Message from Jon Cranston, Director – Hampshire County Youth Bands, June 2022

Dear Hampshire County Youth Band Alumni

Wherever you are in the world, and whatever you are doing, I hope that you are keeping well.

Next academic year marks the 60^th anniversary of the formation of the Hampshire County Youth Bands.  You may, of course, know this ensemble as the Mid-Hants Schools Band, the Hampshire Youth Concert Band, or maybe something else depending on when you were a member.   Whether that was in the 1960’s, 80’s, 00’s, or have left recently; I am delighted to invite you to join us for a weekend that will celebrate sixty wonderful years of the bands.

We will be holding a concert on Saturday 15 April at The Anvil in Basingstoke, the home of so many memorable HCYB performances for nearly 30 years.  The Hampshire County Junior, Training, and Youth Bands are going to perform in the first half, which will feature a newly commissioned work by Paul Lovatt-Cooper which has been written especially for the occasion.  

The second half of the concert will feature a reunion band made up of former members across our 60-year history.  You are warmly invited to take part in this special ensemble.  Full details, including rehearsal timings and details how to access practice parts will be made available in due course.  We will be providing several different ways of supporting you in preparing for the day, so it really doesn’t matter if the instrument hasn’t come out of the loft for 20+ years!  As well as myself and members of the current HCYBs team, Jock McKenzie, David Rich (son of, and representing Leighton Rich), and Tony Knight (son of, and representing the founder of the HCYBs, John Knight) will also be taking up the baton to lead the group. 

If you would like to take part, please complete the google form found in the events area below.

Cornets can choose between upper (solo and repiano) and lower (2nd and 3rd).  Similarly, euphonium and baritone are listed separately.  As a way of ensuring registrations are genuine, you’ll be asked when you were in the band, and who the conductor was during your final year.  

The celebrations continue into the following day, Sunday 16 April, when we will be joined by the world-famous Cory Band.  There will be a reception for HCYB alumni and their families at The Anvil prior to a concert by the Cory Band.  We do hope that you will be able to join us for this event too.

Of course, if you would rather not play and be part of the audience, you would still be most welcome.  Information about how to buy tickets will be made available on the 60^th Anniversary section of our website in due course. 

For now, a great way for you to contribute to the planning of this event is to share with me any anecdotes or bits of significant history etc you may have.  You can send these to me via my email – jon.cranston@hants.gov.uk.  Spaces for the reunion band are going to be limited according to The Anvil requirements, so please register early to avoid disappointment. 

Please do get in touch if you have any questions at all, and we look forward to seeing you next year!

Jon Cranston
Director – Hampshire County Youth Bands