Belle Isle Working Men’s Club has come to the rescue and become the new home of Lofthouse Brass Band.
“Unfortunately our previous venue needed to undergo structural repairs and changes which included our storage facilities! A brass band comes with a lot of baggage – large percussion instruments, music cabinets, stands, banners, uniform etc and so we had to look for somewhere new.
“We cast our net throughout the area and Belle Isle kindly offered us a new home. Many of us have become members of the club, it’s a great rehearsal space and hopefully we’ll benefit them too by performing regularly at the venue.” explained Andy Schofield.
The area of Lofthouse in Wakefield had a brass band for many years associated with the local colliery. When the pit faced closure unfortunately it also spelled the end of the band.
The current Lofthouse 2000 Brass Band was formed in 1999, filling the void left by the colliery band many years earlier and providing a new platform for local brass players.
The band have continued to grow and progress, crowned twice as Yorkshire champions and representing their county three times at the National Brass Band Finals. This year the band were forced to find new rehearsal facilities and they are now firmly established here in Leeds at the Belle Isle WMC where they had the honour of hosting an inaugural Service of Remembrance in November.
The band consider themselves an integral part of the community and in recent years they’ve raised money for the local hospice, celebrated the royal coronation at a local care home and had the honour of commemorating the 50th anniversary of the Lofthouse Colliery Disaster. This year they have performed throughout Yorkshire and had a visit from South Leeds Community Radio – a session still available to hear on their website.
In 2020 the band collaborated with the Daily Mirror and Sheffield University on an article focusing on mental health. Dr Michael Bonshor (Sheffield University) commented:
“Our research shows playing in a brass band can be beneficial for physical, psychological and social wellbeing. Players report improvements in respiratory and cardiovascular health, general fitness, cognitive skills, mental wellbeing and social engagement.”
December is by far the busiest month in the brass band calendar but a brass band is not just for Christmas. Visit the band website at www.lofthousebrassband.org.uk for details of how make a booking, become a patron or simply enjoy listening to some great music.
You can see the band perform at Belle Isle WMC in a charity fundraising concert on Friday 13 December starting at 7:30pm.
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