Falco returns

Having visited us last year to experience the Whit Friday march contests across Saddleworth, our Dutch friend Falco came back this year with the brass players from his wind band, the Société St Martin Fanfare de Stein.

We squeezed on the coach together and made an evening of it. We marched to an arrangement of Country Roads that proved enormously popular with the crowds, especially as the evening wore on.

On the contest stand we performed Mephistopheles. This was followed at each venue by a hybrid band made up of our Dutch visitors, with their vacancies (including conductor) filled by Flixton, playing Thundercloud. Did they not expect the blazing sunshine?

We performed remarkably consistently and were pleased to be placed 15th overall from more than 140 bands from all sections that registered for the event. St Martin’s came in 53rd – not at all bad for a band that had rehearsed so little together.