A fabulous evening of music, carols and Christmas fun at Accrington Golf Club. Everyone had a fantastic time and it's always nice to receive lots of great feedback from the audience as well. A big thank you to the staff and members of this prestigious golf club who made us feel very welcome and made the event so memorable.
More pictures of this event will be placed in our audio and video gallery
We were honoured to support the Royal British Legion in a very moving, commemorative concert at the Brave Church in Accrington. An evening of fun, song, music and of course, remembrance. A truly memorable occasion, with the fantastic Royal British Legion standard bearers opening and closing the concert. What a privilege to be able to play the rousing 'British Legion March' as they paraded their flags with pride. A great evening for everyone, including the mayor and local dignitaries who kindly gave their support to the event.
A magical evening of music, singing and fireworks (despite the atrocious weather). Our set list included: 'The British Legion March', 'Trumpets Trocadero', 'I Dreamed a Dream (with vocalist)' , 'Highland Cathedral' (with solo bagpipes), 'Libertango' and 'Lord of the Dance'. As always, we finished with classic Proms numbers such as: 'Jerusalem', 'British Sea Songs' and 'Land of Hope and Glory'.
Getting everything setup - we're almost there! Two gazebos, lighting, mixing desk and PA system.
This is the view of the grounds. Some of the audience have already setup their gazebos and are getting ready to picnic!
At short notice, we were invited to participate in the 2023 'Brass in the Park' season organised by Burnley Council in Scott Park. This is a regular concert for the band, which is usually held at Towneley Park. This year, though, the concert will took place in the equally magnificent Scott Park.
Getting ready to play a selection of coronation classics in the Cottage Garden of Rhyddings Park.
During early May we played a fantastic private concert in a local Masonic retirement home. This event was a bit of a new format for us - much smaller than we're used to, but the sound was fantastic and the audience loved it and were very appreciative afterwards!
We were asked to play music from the musicals, so we played some great pieces from the classics such as 'Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs' , 'Me and My Girl' and 'You''ll Never Walk Alone' and finished with a spectacular 'Lord of the Dance' finale (it always goes down very well and the band really enjoy playing it!).
Whilst many of our supporters couldn't attend this concert, we'll post lots of content about it on our Facebook page.
We now have a Facebook page, so please check it out and find out what's going on. We'll be sharing lots of information about all our concerts on Facebook so whether you choose to follow us via our website or on social media, you can be sure to be kept in touch with all our events.
We're happy to announce that we will be back playing concerts in 2022. For details of our confirmed bookings, please look at the 'Forthcoming events' section of our website.
So far we've been having a great time playing a wide range of music including:
Saturday 9th July 2022 -
Again, another fabulous, magical evening playing in the grounds of Hollowforth Hall near Preston. Supporting Preston Rotary club and local charities, the band played a mixture of pieces, supported by a stunning singer and a bagpiper to add to the occasion.
This event was a sell-out, with everyone bringing a gazebo or pinic rug, and food and drink, and of course, helping out some very good causes at the same time.
As always, the evening finished in true 'Last Night of the Proms' style with 'Jerusalem' and many other favourites before closing with a spectacular firewords display. Wow!
Sunday 26th June 2022 -
Thanks to everyone who joined us for an afternoon of music at Happy Mount Park in Morecambe. This is a regular event for the band, but the first one for a couple of years.
With the weather being changeable, we played in the cafe within the park. Everyone had a great time listening to songs from TV, films and musicals and a few quirky pieces from the jazz world!
When VE Day dawns on 8th May 2020, it will be 75 years since the guns fell silent at the end of the war in Europe.
As part of the celebrarions for VE 75, the band will be taking part in the festivities planned within Acrrington town centre on 10th May 2020. The whole event will last from 11am-5pm but specific times for our concert have not yet been confirmed.
Watch this space for more information on what promises to be a great day for all.
All Saints' Church is a beautiful church blessed with incredible acoustics. Not surprisingly, it's the perfect venue for an evening of music, regardless of style or genre.
The band played a mixture of rock and pop themes, including medleys from the Beach Boys, The Carpenters and Elvis) followed by some fantastic Christmas tunes - some of the traditional classics of course, but also, one or two having a modern contemporary feel (such as 'Calypso Christmas') to keep things nicely balanced. The church organist provided some additional tunes to the delight of all present. A concert to remember.
Our 'Lancashire Remembers' Concert, which , in partnership with the Royal British Legion brought together musicians and bands from across our county, is the winner of a fundraising award conveyed by the Royal British Legion.
The concert was recorded by BBC Radio Lancashire and featured in a special commemorative programme that was broadcast shortly after the event.
Receiving the award is Anne Ellwood (Chair of the Organising Committee) and Nick Holme (ELCB).
Everyone enjoyed a great evening under the stars at Hollowforth Hall near Preston on 6th July. A fabulous concert with solo performances from our vocalist and solo bagpiper. Fireworks spectacular to finish!
What a fabulous and moving event this was. To honour our heroes in a Festival of Remembrance at the Preston Guildhall was such a privilege and an event that is ever likely to be surpassed.
The event was streamed live and hosted by Sally Naden from BBC Radio Lancashire, with edited highlights being transmitted Sunday 11th November. Members of the University of Central Lancashire (UCLAN) media team captured and mixed the live event on video.
The video can be found on You Tube, but the link will also be added to our site shortly in this section.
Some of the sounds and photographs from the day can be found within the 'Sound and image gallery' section of our website under the 'BBC TV and Radio Events' section.
Live broadcast from the Radio Theatre, BBC Radio Lancashire, Monday 27th August, 2018.
The band was honoured to have been asked by BBC Radio Lancashire to support a live music event in support of a very special occasion.
BBC Radio Lancashire broadcast a live performance from their own Radio Theatre in Blackburn during the afternoon of the August Bank Holiday Monday in support of one their presenters who had been diagnosed with cancer. Joining the band in the BBC Radio Lancashire Theatre for the live broadcast were a number of well-known artists: actor/singer/comedian Bernard Wrigley (Emmerdale, Coronation Street, Dinnerladies), guitarist Ken Nicol, Del Mundo and the Houghton Weavers.
This was a very special event for someone who has brought his own style of happiness to many people throughout Lancashire. All the performers and presenters had a great afternoon of live music and laughter.
One of the numbers we played at the Radio Theatre, the theme from 'Rocky' was recorded and you can listen to this in the 'Sound and Image Gallery' section of our website.
History was made at Preston North End FC on December 22nd with the unveiling of a memorial tribute to the Dick, Kerr Ladies football team to commemorate one hundred years since they played their first game at this famous stadium. The wall mounted memorial is the first of its kind in the world and is made from 3.5 tonnes of granite and will stand six metres high by four meters wide.The event attracted a large audience who were entertained by the East Lancashire Concert Band and a combined choir made up of The Kirkham Singers and Freckleton Village Singers.
The band played a special arrangement of the Preston North End anthem ‘Margie’ which had been arranged especially for them and was the first time it had been played. BBC Radio Lancashire broadcasted live from the car park with John Gillmore and the unveiling took place at 3.00pm.
East Lancashire Concert Band continues to celebrate its 175th anniversary by launching an exhibition of photographs, artefacts, and history "story boards" at Accrington Library.
The collection was presented to the library following earlier displays at the Hyndburn Heritage Centre and, as part of "Amazing Accrington", at the Howarth Art Gallery.
The band was founded in 1842 as Accrington Old Band and led the parade of the Pals Battalion in September 1914.
The exhibition will remain in the library until the 16th November so there is plenty of time to come and look at the exhibition.
The band were pleased to collborate with Blackburn on Drama Club during October in the Thwaites Empire Theatre.
We played a specially chosen programme of 1930s music to support the Club's award-winning play, 'Address Unknown'.
The play had enjoyed a successful tour across the country, but finally came home to the Thwaites Empire Theatre, Ewood. Along the way the Drama Club collected no fewer than 9 Festival Trophies, ranging from Best Male Actor to Audience’s Choice, with extremely appreciative responses from all the audiences.
During the first half of the performance, the band played music from famous composers such as Gershwin and Benny Goodman, and from popular shows from the era such as The Desert Song and New Moon. This set the mood for the evening and led perfectly into the curtain music for the play – Cole Porter’s 'Night and Day.'
We're very pleased that an article covering the band's remarkable history appears in the June edition of this popular and vibrant regional magazine.
Check out the article by clicking on the 'History of the Band' tab and following the link to the article.
We were honoured to be asked to provide the music for a 'last night of the proms' event in the grounds of this magnificent Grade II listed building near Preston on Saturday 15th July. The event was a mixture of light, entertaining music followed by a spectacular proms-style finish, including fireworks!