Nicky Bell: Stuart Black -Hawick Saxhorn Band

Last Thursday night well-known local brass musician Stuart Black gave a talk to the Rotary Club about his career in music and youth development of brass in Hawick and the Scottish Borders.

Stuart currently conducts the “Hawick Saxhornettes” junior brass band and is conductor of a number of brass bands in the region while also teaching brass at Borders schools.

His talk began by demonstrating some of the instruments which compose a brass band and then focussed on the development of brass and instrumental tuition for youth in the region.

The Junior Saxhorn band member numbers declined after the COVID crisis but have slowly been rebuilt and a few members have recently progressed to the Senior Band and played for the Scottish Borders Youth Brass Band. The Saxhornettes also have had recent successes at the Scottish championships at Perth.

Stuart articulated the challenges around funding but also the importance that these bands have in the local community; the benefits to young people learning a musical instrument and playing in a band, and also, the efforts to ensure new members develop and that these bands continue to flourish for years to come.

A question-and-answer session followed with Stuart fielding many questions ranging from the costs of instruments to access to tuition in local schools.

Six members of the Junior Saxhorn band are attending the National Instrumental Brass Band of Scotland residential course this summer which is a great opportunity to develop their skills and play with other youth band members throughout Scotland. To help fund this, the Rotary Club held a quiz night last month and a cheque for £410 was presented to Stuart on behalf of the band.

Andy Tyler proposed a vote of thanks.