Slaidburn Silver Band were established over 100 years ago in the Hodder valley and have played for many events since their creation, around the world and at home, perhaps most famously when they were honoured by an invitation to play for Her Majesty The Queen during her visit to the Hodder Valley in 1989.
They differ from other brass bands in that their instruments are silver-plated, this dates from a time when silver-plated instruments were significantly more expensive than brass instruments so playing them implied that a band were a lot more successful. Such ‘Silver bands’ are still held in high esteem to this day, even though the price disparity between the different metalled instruments isn’t quite so pronounced now.
(Slaidburn Archive)
Slaidburn
The band is renowned around the world for the March ‘Slaidburn’, which was commissioned around the turn of the century by the conductor at the time William Rimmer (1862-1936). As well as the march he is fondly remembered for having helped navigate the village’s band through one of its most turbulent periods during his tenure, preventing it from becoming another casualty of history like so many of its local contemporaries.
William played a huge part in the brass band scene throughout his life though he retired from contesting in 1909, winning both the National and Open conductor competitions in the last 5 years of his contesting career and in 1908 taking second-place in both events.
Allegedly it was the relentless touring which led to William becoming exhausted and retiring from contesting early although he then went on to conduct the Southport Municipal Military Band. This was a group of musicians hired by Southport Corporation for the Summer Season to play each morning and evening between May and December, and whilst he was there ran the Southport Orchestral Society, so he obviously really loved what he did for a living and found it hard to give up.
He had originally offered the march to the Wingates Temperance Band at Westhoughton near Bolton to be their signature march, however they rejected it and William was so upset by this that he subsequently offered the march to Slaidburn to show his gratitude for their hospitality during his time there.
The March featured in the popular 1997 film The Full Monty, and is performed by marching bands around the world, here it is being performed in the city of Rizal, near Manilla in the Phillipines, and here is Slaidburn Silver Band performing the Slaidburn March whilst marching through Slaidburn as part of 2018’s May Queen Festival;
The March over Waddy Fell
36 years ago, on the 23rd of April 1988, the band set off on a sponsored march over Waddington Fell from the village of Slaidburn to Newton and over the fell to Waddington and then Clitheroe, they set off from Slaidburn at at 9.30am and arrived in Clitheroe at 2.30pm.
Luckily the weather was particularly fine on the day although the band members became quite hot marching up the steep incline in the sun, so on the way they stopped off at Walloper well (it was when writing that article that I remembered about this).
An Arduous Trek
Although comprised mainly of young farmers who are well-used to tramping long distances over the hills and fells in all sorts of weather it still must have been an arduous trek for the band, I’ve walked this route many times myself, particularly when I lived in Slaidburn and had to make my way back home from Clitheroe, so I know that hill and how steep it is very well!
Very few bands had ever marched such a distance and elevation before whilst carrying their heavy instruments, directly outside Newton is an infamous incline of 13.1% and the average gradient up to the cattle-grid at the apex of the road is 6.3%, with an elevation difference of 823ft over 2.4 miles, of course that doesn’t include the 1 mile climb over the hill from Slaidburn to Newton or the long, but straight-forward descent into the Ribble valley and Clitheroe.
(Slaidburn Archive)
Seeing the band perform
Slaidburn Silver Band can be seen performing at the Hark to Bounty during the summer on the last Thursdays of May, June, July and August, playing from 7pm to 9pm in the Inn’s beer garden if the weather’s fair, or in the courtroom upstairs if it’s not.
Please be forewarned that these nights are very, very popular so can get packed-out early, the courtroom can only fit around 100 and gets absolutely crammed, also if they’re playing in the beer-garden all of the seats will be taken by the early-birds so it’s advisable to bring your own (and midge repellent too!)
This year’s first Brass at the Bounty will be on Thursday the 30th of May, ‘batons up’ at 7:15pm but you can see the band play earlier at the village’s May Queen Festival service on Sunday the 19th of May, 12:30 pm at St Andrew’s Church, where the band’s current conductor, John Cowking is also the Organist, after which they will lead the May Queen Festival procession through the village to the Village Hall.
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Northwest Nature and History 