2000 - 2003    Mr. David Roberts

David started playing the cornet at the age of six and for many years played cornet and later Eb bass in Salvation Army brass bands. He studied piano and tuba at the Royal Northern College of Music – his tuba tutor was Stuart Roebuck. He has played tuba with the Halle Orchestra, English National Opera and the Manchester Mozart Orchestra and almost all amateur orchestras in the North West.

Dave has played with Besses o’th Barn, Whitefield Manchester. For twenty five years he was tuba player with the Stockport Symphony Orchestra and also has wide experience as a brass quintet player. He has made two recordings with the folk group ‘Strawhead’. He is currently Head of Music at Ysgol Brynhyfryd Ruthin.   

A Salvationist by birth, Gareth started playing the cornet at the age of 8 years. By the time he was 13 he was playing solo cornet for the Wrexham Salvation Army band. He remained with the Wrexham S.A. band until he enlisted as a musician in the Royal Air Force. He was posted to the Royal Air Force College Band, Cranwell, where he was a member of the solo cornet bench for many years.

Gareth has conducted many bands over the years and was the resident conductor to the Point of Ayr Colliery Band for some three years. During this time the Point of Ayr band became B.B.C. Radio Wales’ Champion band on two consecutive years and also won the Pontin’s Championship.
 

2004 - 2005 : Gareth Westwood

Hailing from the South Wales Valleys, Gareth, upon taking up the trombone at the age of 13, found himself playing for his first championship band (Tongwynlais) 2 years later. After attaining 4 a-levels he moved to Manchester in 2000 to study at the Royal Northern College of Music. Here he was to meet key figures within the Band movement and has been lucky enough to work with some of the nations top bands. During his first two years of study, Gareth signed with the Leyland Band. After parting company with the Leyland Band in 2002 Gareth found himself ‘guesting’ with many top bands including the Fairy FP Band, Brighouse and Rastrick Band, Grimethorpe Colliery UK Coal and YBS.

Working with such eminent conductors inspired Gareth to take the baton himself and in his third year of study at the RNCM, he undertook a course of study in conducting with Clark Rundell. As well as conducting the Royal Buckley Town Band Gareth has also been MD of the Rhyl Silver Band and has a keen interest in Jazz and early music. He is a founder member of the Northern Cornetts and Sakbutts, has worked extensively with the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment and has played with the Kath Dyson Jazz Orchestra. In the summer of 2002 he also performed with the QE2 Jazz Orchestra on its cruise of Norway. Gareth graduated in summer 2004 with an honours degree in music (Bmus) and is undertaking a course in initial teacher training at the Manchester Metropolitan University in September 2004.

He is also a keen Composer/Arranger and is currently working on a partnership with ex-teacher, Andrew Berriman on getting his works published. Gareth lives in Didsbury, South Manchester.