About

About the Haslemere Town Band

A bit of History ..

In the early 1800s, Haslemere was a small rural town with a population of about 1,500 people. The main industry of the area was hoop making and wood turning. In 1834, William Bridger, a wood and brush stock turner, and his younger brother, Charles, formed a small Band consisting of both brass and woodwind instruments. William had several sons and they all played in the Band in later years. Soon after 1834, two other brothers Edward and William Berry, started up a second band in Haslemere. In 1837 the two bands amalgamated under the leadership of William Bridger and this is the accepted date for the official founding of the Band. The first engagement was when it played for the coronation of Queen Victoria in 1838.

Over the years the Band has had many players related to the founders - as late as 1980's there were still Berry's playing (Colin Berry) and in the late 1990's Neville Bicknell, great great Grandson of founder William Bridger retired from playing although his son still plays with the band now. The Band's current president, Tony Waddell, is a great great grandson of one of the originators of the band, Charles Bridger.

In 1902 the band, now renamed the Haslemere Town Band contested at the National Championships at Crystal Palace and played two further times at Crystal Palace in the 1930's before it burned down. In 1907 Sir Harry Waechter, High Sheriff of Surrey, who resided at Ramsnest, near Chiddingfold, instigated the Ramsnest Band Competition Silver Cup. Haslemere Town Band now owns the cup as it become the outright property of any band that won the competition three years in a row or four years in total. The Ramsnest Cup along with other band memorabilia is held by the Haslemere Museum.

During the 1914-18 War, both the Haslemere Institute Band and Town Band lost many players, and so after the war the two bands amalgamated under the new president, Turner Bridger, son of Charles and with O. J. Langridge as conductor.

After the second world war, the Band went into decline and was held together by Denny Clement who both conducted and played at rehearsals and engagements, not easy when you play trombone.

Maurice Wright became the Musical Director in 1978 and held the post for fourteen years. June, his wife, decided that she did not wish to be a 'band widow' and took up first the trombone and then the euphonium, moving later to flugel horn and finally baritone. Both Maurice and June still play in the band.

Graham Wade held the baton as Musical Director from 1984 until 2006. On Graham's resignation, Peter Yarde became the Band's Musical Director

Our Current Musical Director David Wright

David was born in Glasgow and studied trumpet, conducting and singing in Edinburgh. In 1979 he was a finalist in the Young Conductors Competition organised by the National Association of Brass Band Conductors and in 1985 he was the only British competitor selected to take part in the International Conductors Competition at the Wereld Muziek Concours in Kerkrade, Netherlands.

In 1988 he moved south to become Head of Brass at Charterhouse, a post he held for 31 years until 2019. In 1988 David also became the Music Director of the prize-winning Godalming Band, a post he held for 25 years.

From 1993 to 1998 David was Musical Director of Opera Omnibus and he has been conductor of the Godalming Youth Orchestra since 1996.

David has a particular reputation for theatre work, both opera and musicals. His theatre highlights include being Musical Director of Les Miserables and Blondel, the latter produced in collaboration with the writer Sir Tim Rice

Between 2004 and 2015 he combined his musical career with that of a Housemaster at Charterhouse. He is a Past President of the Rotary Club of Godalming. In 2017 he was delighted to be elected an Honorary President of Godalming Music Festival.