Talk Subjects
Chris Helme
Graham O’ Connor was a member of the Grimethorpe Colliery Band that won the British Open Championship, as a conductor he holds the joint record of directing three separate bands to the Grand Shield title in 1980, 1992 and in 1994.
He also won the Senior Trophy and Second Section National title with Hatfield, as well as claiming a unique Butlins Mineworkers ‘Double’ in 2005 as Hatfield won the First Section and Ransome won the Championship title.
His had victories at the National Championships, Pontins, Butlins, Yorkshire Area, Durham League, CISWO and others.
He was highly respected as a band trainer and conductor throughout the UK, he had success with many bands including Cwmaman Institute Silver Band in Wales.
He contributed greatly to the banding movement and bands all over the UK benefited from his advice and musicality.
After a long illness Graham sadly passed away on December 5, 2013.
We are featuring Graham on this show conducting the Cwmaman Institute Silver Band in 2001.
Hello Brass Banders - A Happy Easter to you all. The first half of this week's show is music you associate with Easter time. Some of the pieces we are playing you will be very familiar with but then I have included a few more that are may be new to you.
As always we have some wonderful soloists.
Now that the 2024 UK National Final contest test pieces have been announced we are going to be playing them all over the next few weeks. We are starting off this week with the 1st section test piece 'Excalibur' composed by the Belgium composer, arranger and conductor Jan van der Roost. It is played by the Breeze Brass Band from Japan in 1993. I am sure that the competing bands will enjoy playing this work and the audience will certainly enjoy listening to it.
Eric Winstone was born on January 1, 1913, in London and died May 2, 1974, in Pagham, Sussex. He was an English big band leader, conductor and composer. He was playing the piano in his spare time from a job as Westminster Gas and Coke Company, in London, that led him to form his first band in 1935. He was a self taught accordion player and started an accordion school and formed an accordion quintet, a swing quintet, and a big band orchestra. During World War II his orchestra entertained the forces and performed at holiday camps after the war. In 1955 a short film of The Eric Winstone Band show was made.
His signature tune was his own composition Stagecoach which he wrote in 1943. It was arranged for brass bands by Norman Richardson and for many years was a popular piece that brass bands played on park engagements and seaside bandstands. On this show it is featured by Harry Mortimer conducting his Men O Brass in 1958.
Mill Lane closed off during the building of Sainsbury's Supermarket - a big change in the town centre. Now in 2024 we have even more supermarkets - how many does a town with a population of approximately 33,000 actually need.
Driving through the Ford in Thornhill Beck Lane was not recommended on this day in 2003.... But as always there will be those that will try it and wonder why they get stuck in the middle and then have to be towed out.
This scene on the canal is about 2000 and shows the canal being dredged of silt and no doubt a few shopping baskets and possibly the odd trolley as well. With a bit of luck they might find an old safe having been dumped by some burglars.
It could be in this location where the new bypass road would go across the canal having followed the road down Halifax Road, through the un-made car park. It is interesting that over the last week repairs and re-laying of car park surfaces have been announced in the news, but did you notice the same as I did that there was no mention of this car park being repaired or being re-surfaced. Once the bridge carries traffic across the canal the route will be on Bridge Road behind the Golden Hind fish and chip restaurant.
Edward George White (21 August 1910 – 1994) was a British composer of light music, whose compositions including "The Runaway Rocking-Horse" (1946), "Paris Interlude" (1952), "Puffin' Billy" (1952) and the signature tune for "The Telegoons" (1963), became familiar as radio and television theme tunes.
White was born in London, England, and was largely self-taught. He became a violinist in a trio and various dance bands, performing also on saxophone and clarinet. He became known as an arranger of music and, after service in the RAF during World War II, he ran a ballroom orchestra at the Grand Spa Hotel in Bristol. In 1961, the first stereophonic single ever released in the UK, was billed as 'The Sound of Ed White', playing "Coral Reef" and "Tropical Blue". This was released by Pye Records.
"Puffin' Billy" (1952) is perhaps his most familiar composition, especially in the original recording by Hubert Clifford and the Melodi Light Orchestra. The piece was used as the signature tune for the BBC Light Programme's Children's Favourites, a radio request programme, from 1952 to 1966.
"The Runaway Rocking-Horse" (1946) was another White novelty tune used as the theme tune for the filmed U.S. television series Life with Buster Keaton (1951 - 1952). Wer are playing this 1946 noveltyt piece on today's show wityh a performance from the Morris Concert Band conduc ted by Harry Mortimer in 1978.
Here are some of the staff, family and friends at Sandholme Fold residential home wondering where to start with their spades and hoes to build the new patio.
This photograph is dated December 2, 1994, when this new cafe was formally opened by the Mayor of Calderdale Councillor Stephen Pearson. Here he is with the owner Colin Wandby standing outside the new cafe. Sadly by September 2000 the cafe had closed down.
Talks Available
All the presentations are timed to last up to an hour except where shown - questions are gladly taken after the presentation. All have been presented to male, female and mixed audiences of varying age groups.
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A Postcard from the Past
The Sunny Vale Pleasure Gardens, Halifax - Yorkshire’s Alton Towers of the…
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All in a Days Work
Reminiscences from 30 years in the Police Service – (humorous lecture presentation)…
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Legends from the world of Brass Bands
(Info-tainment – digital slides & music) – 1 hour presentation.
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A Week in May
A story based on the Murder of Lord Frederick Cavendish (of the…
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Memories of Christmas Past
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The Road to Publication
In 1979 I was asked to assist in presenting a series of…
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Holiday Memories from the Past
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How we used to live
We have all seen and experienced changes in our lives. Bring back…
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Other Folks Rubbish (Not suited to a Zoom presentation)
With a local history theme… – (thought provoking humorous lecture presentation) –…
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So you want to be a Pirate ? - The life of a Pirate was not all that it seemed
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Superstitions, New Year Resolutions and the Origins of St Valentine's Day
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Brighouse at Work
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Sorry but I am not able to accept any more face to face talk bookings at the present time ONLY ZOOM TALKS
