Published on 1st July 2025

The Horsham Borough Band held a special concert at St Mary’s Parish Church in May to celebrate its 125th anniversary. 

In recent years, the Band has hit new heights under Musical Director Will Wilkins, coming first in the London and Southern Counties Area contest in 2024 – its best result for nearly 50 years. For May’s anniversary concert, the Band invited previous members and local dignitaries to attend. They enjoyed a varied programme that included outstanding performances by guest soloist Tom Hutchinson, the principal cornet player of the Cory Band.

TITANIC EFFORT

Many brass bands were founded in industrial towns and villages, and were particularly prevalent in mining communities. They often enjoyed the support of employers, as they promoted discipline and community spirit amongst workers. Many defunct companies now survive only in the names of their former bands, such as Black Dyke Mills. Horsham’s Band didn’t have quite the same industrial roots, but towards the end of Queen Victoria’s reign, brass bands were being established across the nation. The core instruments were cornets, flugelhorns, tenor horns, baritone horns, euphoniums, trombones and tubas, as well as percussion instruments, such as drums and cymbals. 

The Horsham Recreation Silver Band was founded in 1900 and made its first appearance in the town in 1903, though it had already performed in Cowfold to mark the Coronation of King Edward VII in June 1902. Tradesman and historian William Albery was among its founder members. Following his death in 1950, his extensive collection of local posters – many of which promoted the Band’s concerts – was donated to Horsham Museum and Art Gallery.

During its concerts, the Band raised money for good causes both home and abroad, including a 1912 performance for the Titanic Disaster Fund, which raised £20. That same year, following a merger with the Horsham Town Band, the Horsham Borough Silver Band was formed. It wasn’t until 1974 that it dropped the ‘Silver’ from its name. During the First World War, many of its players were called up for service, but the Band trained younger musicians to step in and continued to hold concerts, raising money for relief funds. By the 1930s, it had earned a reputation as one of the finest brass bands south of London and was the first outside of the north of England to play live on the BBC. For one of these requisitions, they were asked to play at 2am, as the concert was transmitted live to Canada. However, the band has always maintained a close connection to the town too and still performs regularly at the Carfax Bandstand, Park Podium and at local Christmas concerts. 

ALL ABOUT THE BASS

Horsham also competes at brass band competitions and its success in recent years has helped elevate the level of musicianship. The London and the South East Region of the National Brass Band Championships of Great Britain is divided into five sections, like the English Football League. Horsham is one of 14 bands currently in the First Section, the second tier of regional brass band playing.  

Much like football, Bands can be promoted or relegated depending on performances, with cumulative results from the last three years deciding who goes up and down. Having been promoted to the First Section in 2020, the Band came first in the London and Southern Counties Area contest in 2024, playing against 16 other bands across a region stretching from Cambridge to Hampshire. This meant it was able to compete at the National Finals, held at Cheltenham in September 2024, achieving a creditable fourth place against all the other First Section winners across the country. This year, Horsham came fifth in the Regionals, putting it in pole position for promotion to the Championship section in 2026.  

Ed Wheatley is one of the longest serving members of the Band, having joined in 1988. Having previously played euphonium and baritone horn, he now plays a B-flat bass tuba and has seen a gradual improvement in standards. He said: ‘Being involved in competitions helps to focus the mind. The Association chooses one piece of music to perform, usually around 20 minutes long, and every Band in the section plays that same piece.

For a couple of months before the contest, we practice it almost exclusively during rehearsals. As we have enjoyed some success in recent years, we have attracted some of the better players from the area, and a level of competition ensures players regularly attend rehearsals to make sure they don’t lose their place in the Band.’ 

‘At the Regional competition next spring, we know that if we finish in the top five, we will have a great chance of being promoted to the Championship section, which will be a wonderful achievement for us both as individual players and as a collective Band.’ 

UNDER PRESSURE

The players attribute much of the Band’s progress to the influence of MD William Wilkins. Will played the euphonium in the Northamptonshire County Youth Brass Band before studying music at the University of Southampton, where he conducted several bands and orchestras, including the brass band. He now works in Hove but continues to play for Bournemouth Concert Brass. He has conducted Horsham Borough Band since 2022 and is now pushing it towards the Championship.  

He said: ‘We are currently in a position where we are challenging for a place in the top tier, which brings some nice pressure. However, I think that the quality of the Band and competition results are two different things. It would be lovely if we could reach the highest section, but if it doesn’t happen, the things that are great about the Band will still be great. I feel we have improved in recent years as we have a stable group of players who enjoy coming together to play each week. With this consistency, it is easier to gradually introduce new players when required.’

The latest member is Liz Franklin-Kitchen, a former opera singer (as Elisabeth Meister) who plays 2nd cornet. Liz said: ‘I played the cornet and trombone in youth bands and orchestras, but singing took over and I became a professional soprano. I was a principal singer at the Royal Opera House in Covent Garden and performed as a soloist all around the world. It came to a tragic end after an accident, and I couldn’t sing at that level any longer. So, I needed a new creative outlet. As I live in Guildford, I searched online for local First Section bands and read about Horsham Borough Band. I saw that Tom Hutchinson was the guest soloist at the anniversary concert and must confess to being a huge fan! So, I went to rehearsals and the Band was very welcoming. Having the chance to perform alongside Tom has been a real honour too.’ 

BRASS IN POCKET

Tom demonstrated his talent on cornet as a teenager, performing solos with the National Youth Brass Band before being invited to join the world-famous Dyke Band. After graduating from the Royal Northern College of Music and spending four years with Dyke, he joined the Cory Band – arguably the finest brass band in the world – on principal cornet. Since 2010, he has helped Cory win four British Open titles, three European titles and also won the Band’s Player of the Year award on three occasions. He is also Professor of Cornet at the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama and has toured the world. 

Tom said: ‘I’m lucky, as my passion has given me a career and taken me to many countries including Japan, Australia and America. One of my highlights with The Cory Band was playing at The Big Feastival, at a farm owned by Blur bassist Alex James. We also recorded an album of Britpop classics as brass instrumentals, although one critic labelled it ‘brit-flop!’ It was an honour to be invited to play with Horsham Borough Band. As well as performing four solos during the evening, I enjoyed learning other pieces in the programme – some of which have important associations with the town – and play them alongside the Band.’

The 125th anniversary concert included Blencathra, a march inspired by the Lake District. It was composed by William Rimmer in the same year the Band was founded and performed by the Horsham Borough Band precisely 100 years earlier. 

Pandora, composed by French flautist Eugène Damaré, is one of the most famous works for cornet and was the first of four wonderful solos from Tom. Others were given their moment in the spotlight too, with trombonists Dan Godsmark, Edward Loveday and Paddy Sears taking centre stage on Trevor Sharp’s Blades of Toledo, while Paul Lovett Cooper’s work Fire in the Blood featured solos by Derek Price (cornet) and Martin Smith (euphonium). Another piece, Beneath the Crooked Spire, was inspired by St Mary’s Parish Church and written by David Woods. 

While the high standard of the Band means that several players live outside the District, many are locally based, helping to maintain connections with the town and surrounding area. The Band was proud to be part of the Coronation Big Lunch party in Cranleigh in 2024, and performed at the annual HDC Civic Service at St Mary’s last October. Their next local appearance will be at the Horsham Park Bandstand on Sunday 20 July, from 2 – 4pm.

Town resident Andy Hartley, who joined the Band over 20 years ago and plays flugel horn, says that a varied programme helps maintain interest. ‘The competitions are wonderful, but rehearsing the same piece of music twice a week for several months can become monotonous, so it’s nice to play at local venues and perform a wider repertoire. We also have an annual trip to Devon for a music festival, enjoying Cornish pasties and a tipple or two along the way. It’s always a great weekend, as we watch Brassed Off on the coach, which fuels camaraderie in the Band.’

Currently, the Band rehearse at a purpose-built hall in Cranleigh, which used to host the now-defunct Cranleigh Brass Band. Having put itself in a strong position to gain promotion to the Championship, the Band is arguably stronger than ever been. However, percussionist Geoff Clarke says there is scope for improvement.  

He said: ‘We regularly have over 20 players at rehearsals, which is a testament to our strength. However, one slight regret is that we haven’t yet managed to establish a junior band, to nurture talent and feed musicians into the main band. We did used to have one, but it requires a huge commitment from players and it wasn’t sustainable. It is something we would love to do again, if the right structure and support was in place.’ 

WORDS: Ben Morris 

PHOTOS: Alan Wright

Further information:

For news and upcoming events, visit www.horshamboroughband.co.uk