Kingdom Brass hold 'spectacular' 10th anniversary concert.
Kingdom Brass celebrated their 10th anniversary in style last weekend, with a sell out concert in the
Lochgelly Centre.
Formed in 1999 by the merger of the Cowdenbeath and Kelty & Blairadam bands, Kingdom performed a 'Night at the Movies',
with video backing, lighting and smoke effects adding to the atmosphere. The band celebrated the anniversary with
a reception after the concert for players, officials, sponsors and invited guests.
The band's guest soloist for the evening was Les Neish, who wowed the audience with 'Zigeunerweisen' (fitting in
with the movie theme as it was used for 'Kung Fu Hustle') and 'The Bare Necessities', which saw Les don a bear suit
and give an impromptu maraca solo.
Band Chairman, Bill Sandell, said of the evening, "The past ten years has just flown in, and been very successful
for the band, so we knew we had to do something special to celebrate that. We have been planning this concert
all year, and full credit must go to the band Secretary, John Todd, for pulling this all together and giving us
an evening which will be talked about for years."
Also appearing in the concert was the Kingdom Brass Youth Band, with Les Neish conducting them through 'Gonna Fly Now'
from Rocky, and principal conductor Anne Crookston in front of the band for 'Wallace and Gromit'. Both bands then
appeared on stage together for the first ever time for a performance of 'The Little Mermaid', with the junior band
players on samba drums.
It had been a busy week for Kingdom, as a thirty strong contingent of youth band players and tutors headed to Meigle,
in Perthshire, for a three day residential stay leading up to the concert. A variety of activities took place
including individual, section and full band rehearsals, games and leisure time. Les Neish travelled with the group
and worked closely with the young players, while the band's principal percussionist, Lynsey Paterson, gave samba
lessons in preparation for the weekend concert.
Youth Band Chairman, Lee Bathgate, said of the course, "The young players in the junior band were really looking
forward to this one, and we gave them a varied programme of music and leisure activities to keep their interest up.
Les was fantastic working with them, and now they're demanding another trip next year!"
added 16th August 2009