Celebrating  the world of brass bands and remembering the unforgettable characters that live on through their music. 

Chris Helme has been involved with the brass band world for more than fifty years and was prompted into researching the subject by a desire to find out where the great performers of yesteryear were today; who are these composers and arrangers whose name you can find in the top left or top right-hand corners of a piece of music? 

• An inside view of personalities from the world of brass bands (both living and deceased), the impact it had on their lives and those people around them.
• A fascinating insight into some of the foremost figures in both their own banding area and the      national scene.
• Evoking many happy memories for those who have been involved with bands at any level over the years.
• An essential record of life in the mill towns as it once was. A triumphant celebration of a community that lives on into the twenty-first century.
• Illustrated with over 100 previously unpublished archive photographs from private collections.

Chris Helme is a writer and brass-band enthusiast who lives in Halifax. He edits The Conductor, the in-house magazine of the National Association of Brass Band Conductors, and also writes for British Bandsman magazine.