Article by Cranbrook Town Band

Cranbrook Town Band were recently able to get back to making music after a hiatus of over 8 months, thanks to the kind support of Fr Rodney Dreyer and St. Laurence Church.

Following the slight relaxation of Lockdown rules and carefully following latest government and Brass Band England guidelines for rehearsals, the band led by conductor Ian Lanceley were able to meet the requirements for social distancing (no small order for a band of 30 players) by making use of the South Wing of the church, approximately 1 mile away from their normal rehearsal venue at Hawkhurst Primary School.

The band were graciously welcomed by Father Rodney on their first rehearsal and it wasn’t long before the familiar sound of an English brass band filled the church and surrounding area.

Hopefully with regular rehearsals up and running again, it wont be too long before lips are back to full resilience and the band are able to perform outdoor concerts. We have some fantastic solos and new pieces on which we are working very hard. We hope to perfect them over the next few weeks ready for a potential public concert at Tonbridge Castle in July (Or as soon as restrictions are eased enough to make the logistics of putting on a concert possible). We also aim to put on a concert at the Church before the end of the year.

To celebrate our return and as a thankyou to the church, here are a few snippets from the last couple of rehearsals.

You can find out more about the band, see when and where we are performing and listen to more of our music by visiting our website http://www.cranbrooktownband.org.uk