Band play a mix of romantic, patriotic and dramatic songs in concert at Connaught Gardens

On Saturday, Sidmouth Town Band hosted its 13th Last Night of the Proms concert at the Connaught Gardens, and it turned out to be a very lucky evening for all involved.

The rain stayed away, and the audience were treated to a brilliantly varied programme of music from the band and their guest soloist, Vicki Campbell.

It was Vicki’s first appearance at the Proms, and she was superb, bringing the crowd to its feet for the patriotic songs, and creating a mellow, romantic mood with her solo pieces. These included Night and Day, The Way We Were and As Time Goes By.

Compere Gordon Sparks, from BBC Radio Devon, was hilarious from start to finish. He interacted with the audience throughout, and he even made the raffle draw highly entertaining!

The band started the evening with the stirring theme from Superman, and then moved to a musical tour of London in a clever arrangement called A London Celebration. The first half featured music which ranged from the serene, beautiful Country Scene, to a collection of Cartoon Classics, complete with impressions of Fred Flintstone and Percy Pig!

The second half started with Dambusters, with several members of the audience - encouraged by Gordon - running around the grass pretending to be Lancaster Bombers. Not that there was much space on the grass. There were at least 450 people at the Gardens, and many had brought along tables, chairs and of course their flags, to create a real party atmosphere. A highlight of the programme was the arrangement of ‘Tonight’, which featured the beautiful trombone sound of guest player, Brett Baker, principal trombonist of the famous Black Dyke band.

The evening came to a rousing conclusion with encores of both Land of Hope and Glory and Rule, Britannia, with the audience just about keeping up with the band in the Sailor’s Hornpipe.

The band, led by their Musical Director, Adrian Harvey, rose to the occasion, playing with spirit and musicality throughout. For all those involved, it was a truly great evening.

The band have 2 concerts left in their summer season of concerts, and will be back at the Connaught Gardens on Sunday at 8pm.