Description

The RAF Halton Area Voluntary Band is based in Wendover near Aylesbury in Buckinghamshire.

Its members come from all walks of life, including the Armed Forces and the Civil Service. The majority of the band are local civilians who travel from a wide area to meet every Tuesday evening.

The rehearsals are held at RAF Halton and we play from 19.30 to 21.30, with a break for a coffee and a chat!

The band can provide a wide variety of ensembles to suit any musical event.

The current Bandmaster is David Richards GCGI who has only been in post since the start of October. He has joined us after serving 36 years within RAF Music Services.

The band was originally formed in the 1920’s as an amateur musical outlet for the RAF apprentices, who learnt their various technical trades at Halton.

In those long-gone days, each wing had its own band, who would march the apprentices to various parts of the camp for different lessons, parades etc.

As Halton is no longer an apprentice training station, its members, whilst still amateurs, are drawn from a wider spectrum of service life. In fact, due to the increased number of civilians (civil servants and contractors etc.) that now work on military establishments, the membership of the band now includes ex-service and civilian musicians as well.

The band performs at many different types of function each year, from official parades, air shows and concerts, to church services, formal dinners and receptions.

The band is often to be seen during the summer months at bandstands around the country, especially in London and on the south coast.

In recent years the band has toured abroad, playing concerts in Norway, France, Germany, Malta and Austria. October 2007 saw the band on a duty tour in Cyprus, playing for an investiture, for the British High Commission in Nicosia and at two service charity concerts.

The present band is drawn from other RAF stations besides Halton. These include Benson, High Wycombe, Northolt, Brize Norton and MOD in London. This means that some band members regularly travel more than 30 miles to attend the weekly rehearsals and engagements.lessons, parades etc.

If you play a woodwind, brass or percussion instrument to grade 5 or above come along and join us

Description

The Stratford on Avon Bandstand stands in the heart of the bustling Recreation Ground just across the river from the Royal Shakespeare Theatre and just a short stroll from the town.

It is a lovely spot to enjoy a summer's afternoon listening to one of the many excellent bands while watching the boats, swans and people go by.

The bandstand is managed by Stratford Town Trust and its programme of bands runs from May through to September. Most band performances start at 2.30 and run for two hours weather permitting.

The Recreation Ground, Swan Nest Lane,

Stratford-upon-Avon,

Warwickshire,

England,

CV37 7LS.