For members

Term Dates

German tour 8-12 July

Final concert 15 July - Egerton Hall

SUMMER BREAK 22 JUL - 23 SEP

2026–27 Term dates

Autumn term

23 September 2026 – Rehearsals begin
28 October 2026 – Half-term (no rehearsal)
16 December 2026 – Final rehearsal

Concerts

Saturday 12 December 2026 – Christmas Carol Concert, St Peter's Church, Brackley
Sunday 13 December 2026 – The Mitre

Spring term

13 January 2027 – Rehearsals resume
17 February 2027 – Half-term (no rehearsal)
31 March & Wednesday 7 April 2027 – Easter break (no rehearsals)
14 April 2027 – Rehearsals resume

Workshop & concert

Saturday 24 April 2027 – Workshop with David Campbell & Lisa Nelsen (afternoon), followed by an evening concert at St Peter's Church, Brackley

Summer term

14 April 2027 – Rehearsals begin
2 June 2027 – Half-term (no rehearsal)
9 June 2027 – Rehearsals resume
14 July 2027 – Final rehearsal

Concerts

Saturday 26 June 2027 – Brackley Armed Forces Day
Sunday 27 June 2027 – Claydon House

Committee

Co-chair: Judi Binns

Co-chair: Natalie Milner

Secretary: Heather Arrowsmith

Treasurer: Lindsey Comben

Tour Director: Helen Henshaw

Social media, website, design: Emily Buttrum

Music Library: Michaela Watts

Refreshments:

Committee Members: Richard Linden

Rehearsals

We at rehearse at Westbury Village Hall Wednesdays from 7:30pm to 9:30pm during term time, with a mid-session tea break lasting around 15 minutes.

Cost

Subs are either:

£ 180 per year,
£15 per month.

In addition, we ask for a contribution of 20p a week to cover the cost of refreshments.

Music

Nearly all the music is on our Google Drive. You should have been given the link when you joined or it is on our WhatsApp Business chat but if you would like it again, just ask one of the committee.

Please bring all your music with you every week - even if Brian has asked us to practice specific pieces, we might play extra.

Practice

Here are some top tips for effective practice from Brian:

Practice is better done regularly and in short bursts; even 10 minutes a day is worth it, and two lots of 15 minutes is better learning time than 30 mins in one go.

Don't always start from the beginning - play the last 16 bars, then the previous 16 bars.

Warm up with something familiar, then move on to a challenge, and finish with something fun.

Pick out a tricky passage and play it very slowly - work out why it is difficult.

Use a mirror to practice in front of and watch your fingers.

Sometimes just forget the music. Concentrate on tone and control of your dynamic range whilst still staying in tune.