Silver Sparrows, well, two of them, play Harrogate International Festival

2013

It's about eight years since we first took to the streets of |Harrogate, marching pan de neck along the Stray, playing outside the War Memorial and finally treading the boards at the Royal Hall or the Conference Centre [we did the latter while they were re-guilding the former].

2009

 

The marching bit was never very good, and did indeed get worse with every year that passed. If you don't practise pan-de-neck, it's impossible to do it well on the day, and realistically, the standard of songs that Sparrows play at can't be done justice to if you have tripped over the kerb, walked into a concrete bollard or lost the rest of the band in the next street.

2013

But this is an international festival and an honour to be asked, though I do wonder why Hedda continues to put up with us, given that our tunes get so scrambled up. However they do make good pictures.

2014

Anyway we are here April 4th 2015. We have as many leaders as we have Sparrows I.e. two of each so have invited a few Foxwood and Steel Rising to help us out and ex-Sparow Yi Bai who seems to be an infinite guest.
 

We were a trio

 

then a quintet

 

then a sextet

We are me (Victoria), Bex, Ash, Millie C, Sophie, Vicky, Wanda, Kirsty and Yi Bai. We are in the cold sunshine of Victoria Gardens opposite the railway station, and we park the van where we played. Wish that could be true in Leeds (you ever played Briggate?).

 

 

then we are a steel band 2015

 We play mostly Leeds Pan Central songs and then throw in some Sparrows-only ones. Ooo! Tricky. Everyone's asking what's in Bflat minor even though we've been playing it in Clocks for years.

 

 

(Another tutor once told some of my players when confronted by an out of tune Bflat [note], that it was okay cos "Victoria doesn't use B flat." just thought I'd throw that in. It didn't do lasting damage, and is a regular comedy moment).

 

Leeds Silver Steel Sparrows are a City of Leeds Youth Music ArtForms steelband.