Story by Amber MacLennan

As we come towards the end of another banding year, we once again pay tribute to the members of our Junior Band who have worked hard and competed in various contests throughout the year. In addition to these contests, the Junior and Training Bands along with various individual players competed in the local Carrickfergus Musical Festival in April this year. Their endeavours are noted below.

Under 12s:
2nd Place – Joseph Parkes
Highly Commended – Euan Watson

Age 13-15:
1st – Andrew Barkley
3rd – Simon Howard
Highly Commended – Oliver McGowan

Age 15-18:
1st Place – Hannah Copes

Under 12s Ensemble:
1st Place – 3rd Carrickfergus Training Band

Under 18s Ensemble:
1st Place – 3rd Carrickfergus Junior Band

Two members from the Senior Band took part in the Open Section. Robin Clinton was first and Amber MacLennan was awarded 2nd place.

A special mention goes to Eb bass player, Andrew Barkley. In addition to winning his section, he was also Overall Brass Champion which meant that he got the opportunity to compete at the Gala evening on the last day of the Festival. He also won this and became Overall Champion winning the James Graham Scholarship with the performance of a piece written specially for him by his older brother, Daniel, called “Whirl”. Daniel, a former member of the senior band, recently graduated from Queens University with a First Class Honours degree in music and is currently working on his composing career.

Congratulations to all members who took part. One member, George Stokes, also sang in the “Song from a Musical” category where he achieved 2nd place.