The GUS band have fingers, toes and everything else crossed in the hope of staging a triumphant return to the Royal Albert Hall for the national Brass Band Championships in October 2021.
The global Covid 19 pandemic has laid waste to the world of live music, as brass bands the world over have gone into lockdown. The GUS band have stayed very active, with a number of ‘lockdown’ videos culminating in their entries for the Cory Online Entertainment Contest in March 2021 and, in May, their entry into the Foden’s online Whit Friday contest.
But, as much fun as these videos are, nothing beats the ‘real thing’, with the whole band sitting and playing together, live, under their inspirational Artistic Director, Chris Jeans.
As things stand it looks like the government will relax the lockdown rules enough to allow for GUS to take the famous London stage — a right they won with their triumph at the 2020 Area Championships.
But, with variant strains of the Covid virus taking hold in continental Europe, we have to hope that the brass band world isn’t plunged into another lockdown. So perhaps you’ll join with us in getting those fingers crossed!