At the recent annual general meeting of the Band two new awards were made to members in recognition of their contribution to the Band in terms of their efforts, be it their musicianship, commitment or their personal qualities. These awards followed a donation to the Band in memory of a former member.
One award, the Didier Chupeau Bandsman’s Award, was voted for by senior band members. Fittingly, the first recipient was Julian Ablett. In the past four years, as Band Secretary, Julian has worked hard to improve the Band’s efficiency in terms of boosting revenue from paid engagements (the Band is self-supporting) without unduly increasing members’ time commitment . He is also an accomplished amateur musician who has contributed towards the Band’s recent contest successes.
Present to make the initial presentation of the Didier Chupeau Bandsman’s Award was Nerys Jones, who was Didier’s partner until his tragic death last year.
The first recipient of the Musical Director’s Award was Daniel Peover, aged 12. In making the award, Musical Director Malcolm Peach noted Daniel’s enthusiasm and the improvement in his playing since joining the senior band a year ago.
See the Photo Gallery for pictures.