We need your help to #SaveOurBand

#SaveOurBand

Our band is at a critical stage in its 127 year history. We have over 100 enthusiastic members aged from 6 to 90, all from the local community, but we have not been able to play together since March. We have a fantastic band room, but we cannot use it to rehearse because the room is not COVID-secure. 

With your help, we can raise the £6000 that we need to install a fresh-air ventilation system to get us playing together again. 

Without these funds, we risk losing our band. The impact on all members, as well as the community who we support through our music, will be simply devastating.

Please help us to Save Our Band

Bilton Silver would usually have performed at many concerts, contests and events over the year, but due to COVID-19,  we have not been able to perform live since March 2020 – and since lockdown started, we have not even been able to meet to rehearse!

And it’s not just our Senior Band – Bilton’s 50+ young (and not-so-young) training band members are also missing band… not to mention our fantastic Evolution band, a contesting band with members of all ages.

Our whole band family just wants to be able to get back to making music together.

We know our audiences are missing us too – we want to connect with you all once more; we want to get back to supporting our local community with parades and town and village celebrations, and getting us back rehearsing is the first step to achieving this.

We want to #SaveOurBand!

Why are we Crowdfunding?

Our wonderful band room has been unused since March as we are unable to make it COVID-safe due to inadequate ventilation. Being in a residential area, opening the doors and windows isn’t an option, so we need to purchase and install a fresh air mechanical ventilation system.

How you can help

We are a self-supporting band, relying solely on the proceeds from concert fees, social events and donations. The loss of our summer and Christmas income is a huge blow to the band, and our fixed outgoings have not reduced as our income has disappeared.

Please donate – choose a reward – or even start a fundraiser yourself!

Your donations will be used to get us back playing in the bandroom – to #SaveOurBand

We will spend your donations on:

• A fresh air mechanical ventilation system with heat recovery 
• Associated installation works

If we meet this target, we will spend any additional funds on:

• Further adaptations to our rehearsal room and additional equipment to enable us to rehearse safely

Bringing the Bilton Band Experience to your Homes

As musicians, we want most of all to connect with our audience! We have chosen the rewards to help us do this as best we can, so choose your favourite one (or two, or three!) and enjoy some quality Bilton Silver entertainment!

About Bilton Silver

Our wonderful “band family” consists of four bands: Mini-Brass, Training Band, Evolution Band and the Senior Band. Membership is free and instruments are provided, so we ensure the band is as inclusive as possible.

Meet Our Bands

Senior Band

Founded in 1893, Bilton Silver (Rugby) Band is a traditional contesting band, placed in the First Section of the National Brass Band Championships of Great Britain (Midlands Area). The band performs at many events throughout the year, varying from “Last Night of the Proms” concerts, to summer fetes, weddings, Christmas concerts and carol services.

Evolution Band

Bilton Silver Evolution Band is another contesting band, again with members of all ages, competing in the 4th Section of the National Brass Band Championships. We are proud to have some of the youngest players in all the competitions we play in.
Evolution Band was formed in 2017, and is conducted by Jack Fisher, who has played over the years in all our bands, and was a member of both the National Children’s Band and the National Youth Band of Great Britain.

Training Band

Our Training Band welcomes players of all ages and skills, with currently over 50 playing members with our youngest member being 6. Everyone just gives it a go, and with a no-fear mentality, we hope to inspire the next generation of young musicians.

Mini-Brass rehearsals, for our youngest players, are lively, friendly and inspiring for young musicians at the very start of their musical career.

National Children’s Brass Band of Great Britain (NCBBGB) Success

Our band is so proud of our young musicians – we currently have 4 players who auditioned and gained places with the NCBBGB.

OUR BAND MISSION STATEMENT

Bilton Silver (Rugby) Band aims to provide high quality opportunities to play and listen to brass music, thereby perpetuating a century-plus tradition and sustaining our musical heritage. It seeks to provide inclusive opportunities to learn and perform and to strive for a sense of fulfilment across all ability levels in an overriding pursuit of excellence, whilst offering a service that fulfils the requests of the wider community.

About #SaveOurBrassBands

Brass bands exist in every corner of the UK, with over 30,000 people of all ages and standards taking part in weekly activity – rehearsing, performing and providing entertainment for their local community.

But we risk losing this forever.

Brass Bands saw their main source of income disappear in an instant when they ceased being able to perform in March in response to the Covid-19 pandemic. 

Months later, we still don’t know when normal performances will be able to take place. A significant loss in income over the summer months, paired with necessary expenditure needed to make rehearsal spaces COVID compliant means that many Brass Bands are in a perilous financial situation.

Without urgent support, we could lose our nation’s amazing Brass Bands. Please help us to make sure they survive this crisis and will be there to be enjoyed by future generations.

#SaveOurBrassBands

#SaveOurBand

Please donate, share this page widely and do what you can to help us to make sure our Brass Bands survive this crisis.