Our French Adventure - June 2023 - A Retrospective
The band were delighted to receive an invitation to the tenth anniversary Brass Band Festival of Bourgueil on 24th/25th June, in the beautiful surroundings of the Loire Valley, France.
We arrived in Bourgueil around Saturday lunchtime, and were welcomed by our hosts from Brassband du Pays Bourgueillois (BBB) with a tasty lunch and plentiful locally-produced wine. This was our first opportunity to practice our French speaking, of which there are varied levels of proficiency around the band!
The Flowers Band with the committee of BBB upon arrival to Bourgueil.
After lunch our principal players delivered masterclasses to members of BBB: Paul Richards to the cornet section, Emily Evans with horns and flugel, Matt Rowe leading euphoniums and baritones, Rob Wilshaw to the trombones, Gregor Spence took care of the basses, and Coco Chan with percussion. The masterclasses focussed on repertoire the band were preparing for that evening’s gala concert, as well as broader advice on how to improve various aspects of playing such as technique and sound.
In the meantime, the rest of the band were taken to the local vineyard for a wine tasting, as the Bourgueil region is renowned for its red wine (delicious wine would become quite the theme of this trip!).
The remainder of the afternoon and early evening was taken up with rehearsals for the evening performance, including our MD Paul Holland working with BBB on ‘Share My Yoke’ which featured soloist Josie Allen. Josie stepped up from repiano to principal cornet seat for the weekend, and played beautifully throughout.
BBB conducted by Paul Holland in rehearsal of Share my Yolk featuring Josie Allen.
The first half of the gala concert was given by BBB, the local band. They presented a varied programme of music, including ‘Olympic Spirit’ , ‘Short Ride in a Brass Machine’, and ‘Under the Boardwalk’ with flugel soloist. The packed out audience of over 600 people were enthralled by their performance, so much so that they demanded multiple encores.
We then took to the stage for the second half with a programme that included our Brass in Concert 2021 Monopoly-themed set, band favourite ‘Bright Lights Big City’, and an outstanding rendition of ‘Flowerdale’ by soprano cornet soloist Paul Richards. Our other featured soloist was Matt Rowe, performing Bert Appermont’s ‘Green Hill’, and both soloists received well-deserved standing ovations. Despite the late hour, well past 11pm, the audience would not let us leave without numerous encores, and we closed the show with a rapid rendition of ‘Toccata’.
It was at this point that our hosts announced their plans for the night’s entertainment, which would include incredible food, boules and wine. We cannot thank them enough for their generosity and hospitality; we thoroughly enjoyed celebrating both band’s performances. A few intrepid members of the band stayed for the after party and early morning barbeque, demonstrating considerable stamina having been awake for over 24 hours since departing from Gatwick! Some of the photos from this part of the trip definitely aren’t fit for public viewing, so you’ll just have to imagine how the later part of the night went!
On Sunday morning we were the first band to perform on the outdoor stage at the festival, in a fantastic line up that also included BBB, A Tours de Brass, Paris Brass Band and Brass Band Exo. It was already nearing 30 degrees on the outdoor stage when we started our set at 11.30am, but the extreme weather would not detract from our enjoyment and quality of performance, as we presented a programme of film and entertainment music for a very enthusiastic crowd. Featured soloists included Matt Rowe, Lauren Chinn and trombone trio Rob Wilshaw, Dom Gardner and Pete Richards, and we were joined on stage by guest players Gabrielle from BBB and Mathilde from Brass Band Exo.
After yet more delicious food, a paddle in the lake, and an opportunity to hear BBB’s second performance of the weekend, it was sadly time for us to depart. After a whirlwind 48 hours of music and entertainment we were all ready for some downtime, and the coach was unusually quiet on the journey to Paris as the band caught up on some much needed sleep! We arrived safely back in the UK on Sunday evening.
We had a wonderful and truly memorable weekend in France. It was an honour to be the first English band to appear at the festival, and we hope not the last! Thank you so much to our friends at BBB for all their work in organising the festival and hosting us for the weekend, and we hope to return to your delightful town again soon. We’ve left with unforgettable memories, souvenirs and a lasting friendship. Au revoir, à la prochaine. Sante!
Our next performance is on Saturday 29th of July, 2pm at Gloucester Cathedral and is our final engagement as part of Three Choirs Festival, and the last engagement before our summer break. Click the button below to get ticket information.