. . . .   Bandmaster's

	04-Jan-18 Happy New Year       Hi everyone Thank you so much for all who were able to support the carolling around Claygate over Christmas - whether playing or supporting collections.  We collected a superb £988 - a fantastic amount- which goes towards the funds to extend the scout centre. Thanks for all your support over 2017. The band have been superb throughout. Wishing you all a Happy New Year.
	12-Nov-2017 Very Busy Weekend!       Hi everyone The band have been superb this weekend. The Lord Mayor's Show was hard work - but really enjoyable too. The band sounded and looked great - and what coverage on the BBC too. And then a superb repeat performance today at Remembrance Parade. Lots of great feedback from people after the service today. Well done to everyone. Everyone should be very proud indeed.
	25-Mar-2017 Wow! - another great concert from the band       Hi everyone I know I've said this on many previous occasions, but I do not think I have ever heard the band sound as good as they did last night. All of the pieces went well and the audience was appreciative throughout.  The junior band should be proud of their contribution - with two pieces performed superbly well and a particularly thanks to Philip for his great first half solo and to James, Ben and Edward for another fantastic performance of Bugler's Holiday.  I have had many positive comments after the event and I hope everyone is proud of what they've achieved and were also able to enjoy the evening too. Well done to everyone!
	02-Jan-2017 Happy New Year       Hi everyone Just wishing the whole band a very Happy New Year. It's been a fabulous period for the band again. The performance during the Lord Mayor's Show was strong and the band's support for the Christmas events in the village has been brilliant. Carolling around Claygate was well received by many people - and we raised a massive £665 for charity. Put that alongside the money we raised at Surbiton station and we have just about reached £1000 for charity - a brilliant achievement.  This term begins on Friday 13th January and I look forward to seeing everyone then.
	11/09/2016 Band Celebrates 15th Anniversary       Hi everyone Yesterday's 15th anniversary band reunion went really well. As always the band sounded great - and the way the band played two new pieces with very little practice time was impressive. Well done to you all - and particularly those who helped to make it a success. The organising team of Mark, Michelle, Jonathan and Margaret did a great job - thank you. Margaret led a small team to produce lovely food, for which we're all very grateful. Jonathan ran the bar and Michelle looked after the admin (thank you). But special thanks must go to Mark Southey for producing the two anniversary videos. Great memories of the last 15 years - and now a superb band history too. Mark - we're very grateful to you. Looking ahead we have a good term through to Christmas. We've already undertaken the Gillwell reunion for which I've received good feedback. We have the Lord Mayor's Show in London, Claygate's Remembrance Parade and the normal Christmas festivities. It promises to be another successful term. Thanks to the whole band for their continued support.
	03/01/2016 What a Year!!!       Hi everyone Congratulations to everyone who took part in our New Year tour to Paris.  I think you'll all agree it was a great success - made even more so by amazingly kind weather.  The sun shone on us throughout!  The performance in leading the Disney Parade on New Year's Eve was excellent. The band sounded superb - and I've already received emails from people in the crown who have found us through our website to congratulate us on our performance.  The concert at the aquarium in Boulogne was also very good indeed. The tour to Paris rounded off a superb year for the band.  Alongside all the important events we support locally, the other two highlights were of course the St George's Day parade at Windsor Castle in April and taking part in  the 800th Lord Mayor's Parade in London in November. (I'm glad the weather in Paris was a tad better than we experienced during the Lord Mayor's Show....!) So, all in all an awesome year and I'm very proud at what the band has achieved As for 2016 - well, it's our 15th anniversary year and it's amazing to think how far the band have come in those 15 years.  Our focus now turns to our main concert of the year on 11 March.  With a 'Last Night of the Proms' theme, and lots of new music to learn, there's a lot to do over the next 2 months!!! Happy New Year
	15/10/2015 Very Busy Autumn Term!!       Hi everyone The autumn term began with a request by the Guide Association Trefoil Guide to play at their annual South East region event at Dorking Halls. Again the band performed to a high standard – and in front of a very appreciative audience of over 450 guiders. Since then, our focus has been on the band’s next prestigious event – taking part in the 800th Lord Mayor’s Parade through central London on Saturday 14 November. This is a major national event and one that required the band to meet a very high standard for acceptance by the Pageant Master for the Lord Mayor. It will be an extremely long march through the City of London and past many of the Capital’s major landmarks. We will be one of many band’s taking part in the event and we do hope that Claygate residents will be strongly represented in the audience. The odd cheer along the way will renew our energy!!! But there will be no time to draw breath after the Lord Mayor’s Parade. Christmas is our busiest period with a number of performances around Claygate, including the Claygate Christmas lights, Carols on the Green with Holy Trinity Church, and the Scouts Carol Service. We will also be carolling down many streets in Claygate in the run up to Christmas. And we mustn’t forget our trip to Paris this New Year to celebrate the start of the Band’s 15th Anniversary Year in 2016 – where we will lead the Disney Parade in Disneyland Paris on New Year’s Eve and then take part in the New Year’s Day Parade through central Paris. Not a bad way to bring in the New Year….…!
	18-Jul-15 2014/15 - Amazing Year for the Band       Hi everyone Last night's awards evening was a brilliant way to end the term.  It was a great atmosphere and the band played to their usual high standard - despite being asked to play pieces we hadn't practised for months (and in some cases years...!)   A particular well done to all the award winners. 2014/15 has been an amazing year for the band and I hope all band members are proud of that they have achieved.  The band started the autumn term 2014 in good shape, but has ended the summer 2015 term significantly better.  The highlight of the year was very clearly the Windsor parade.  But the concert in June was also a superb performance. Well done everyone! Have a great summer break.  And then it's back in September, when we have the Lord Mayor's Show and the trip to Paris to look forward to.  Lots of excitement to come!
	20-May-15 Band invited to 800th Lord Mayor's Show       Hi everyone 2015 really is shaping up into a fantastic year.  Following last months excellent performance at Windsor, I have now had confirmation that we have been invited to take part in this year's Lord Mayor's Parade through central London on Saturday 14th November. This is great news for the band.  If we perform well this year, I would hope we will be able to perform in subsequent years too, making it a core part of the band's calendar. It is of course a high profile parade and so another great opportunity for the band to perform to a new and massive audience. More details to follow.  Given the nature of the event, it is likely that the parade will be for senior band members only.  However, I hope this will be one of many chances for us to perform at the event, so hopefully it is something that the training and junior band members can look forward to as well in subsequent years.
	29-Apr-15 St George's Day Parade of Queen Scouts - Windsor       Hi everyone Well, what a weekend?  I hope everyone enjoyed it.  The event felt pretty special at the time.  Since then I've had great feedback from a range of people who watched the parade and of course the national band adviser described the band's performance as "awesome". I am very proud of what you all achieved and you all deserve to feel proud too.  I know everyone put in hours of hard work to reach this standard. I hope you all agree it was worth it. So, sincere thanks to you all, and congratulations for putting in a truly superb performance.  You rightly deserve the status of a national standard band. I look forward to seeing you all for our practice on Friday.  I'm afraid we have no time for rest.....  Our annual concert is fast approaching on 20 June and as a result of Group camps and bank holidays etc we only have 4 or 5 rehearsals to put together a great concert performance to rival the great marching performance from last weekend. Well done band.
	17-Mar-15 Preparing for Windsor - St. George's Day Parade       Hi everyone The band's preparations for the national St. George's Day parade at Windsor Castle in April are now in full swing. With 5 new marches to learn, a 20 minute drill display to perfect and polish and apply to the band's normal marching standard, it promises to be a very busy few weeks. In addition to the normal Friday rehearsals, the band will practice on a number of Sundays leading up to the parade, in addition to a full band weekend in April. Looking further ahead the band's annual concert will take place on Saturday 20th June at Holy Trinity Church, Claygate. It promises to be an excellent evening, with music ranging from traditional marches through to music from TV and the big screen. Please do put this date in your diary and come along to support the band. Tickets will be on sale via this website after Easter.