Conquerors in concert at The Braid

As well as a variety of items from the band’s wide repertoire, the concert will feature contributions from Gillian McCutcheon (clarinet) and Tracy Martin (soprano). Tickets at a cost of £10 are currently available from the Braid box office or from any band member. Previous years have seen a packed house for this event , and the band hopes the local population will give their usual support for this year’s concert.

The band has certainly had a remarkable year since last year’s concert. In May it travelled to Troon to participate in the Scottish Open Flute Band Championships, competing in a section containing 15 times Scottish champions Carluke Orchestral Flutes and current World champions Ballygowan Flute Band.

Despite being depleted in numbers, the band won both the Open March and Test Piece sections, becoming Scottish Open Champions for the first time in their 127 year history. Conductor Richard Douglas was also awarded the prize for best interpretation. Just a few weeks later the band gathered in First Ballymena Church Hall to record its first ever CD, which has been received with great acclaim by those have heard it. One of the items from it was featured on the BBC Radio Ulster programme “Strike Up the Band “ last December. The CD will be available for purchase at the concert.

The band competed in last year’s NIBA Championships in October, finishing in a very respectable third place in the World Championship section. This means it will be recording a half hour concert of music for this year’s “Strike up the Band” series. In November, the band was filmed by BBC television for inclusion in the BBC 2 series “ Santer”. Clara Wilson (soprano) joined the band at Galgorm Manor to perform “Time to say Goodbye”, and this will be transmitted within the next few weeks.Contest success continued into 2013 with a 3rd prize in the Championship section at the Flute Band Association Own Choice contest in February.

Just recently the Young Conquerors website has gone “live” (www.ycfb.co.uk) and visitors to it can learn more about the band’s activities and history, as well as viewing photographs and concert and contest videos.

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