Tapton Brass was formed as a school band in 1994, by its present musical director Pat Phillips. Since then it has gone from strength to strength, and attracted so much interest from young people outside the school, that it has become Tapton Youth Brass Band. More recently the Tapton Ten-Piece Brass Ensemble was also formed from the Band's most experienced players.
Tapton Brass soon became an award winning band. In both 1997 and 2000 the Band entered the National Festival of Music for Youth
competition and won the highly coveted Outstanding Performance Award.
As a result they were invited on both occasions to
in the Schools Prom at the
Royal Albert Hall, London. The Tapton Ten-Piece also enjoyed success in 2000, reaching the finals of the National Festival of Music for Youth where they performed in the
Queen Elizabeth Hall, London.
Most recently the Band won the Boosey and Hawkes National Youth Brass Band Championships of Great Britain 2003, with principal cornet Thomas Osborne also winning the Best Soloist prize.
Tapton Brass has performed in prestigious venues and with many top musicians.
It has given several concerts with the international Barbershop Choir
Hallmark of Harmony.
In 1998 it gave a concert with the King's Singers in Sheffield City Hall, and in 1999 hosted the world famous euphonium soloist Bob Childs.
Most recently was a joint concert with the Los
Angeles Pierce Symphonic Winds during their tour to the UK in Summer 2002.
The final highlight of 2002 was being invited to give a concert in the Painted Hall in Chatsworth House for a private party hosted by the Duke of Devonshire.
The highlight of every year is the Band's annual concert tours. The Band has now given concerts in Switzerland (1998), Austria (1999), Germany (1999), Holland and Paris (2000), Spain (2001), Italy (2002), Germany (2004) and France (2005). The Tapton Ten Piece also enjoyed its own tour to Belgium in 2001.
The Band has now produced six recordings, "Tapton Brass", "Tapton Brass Encore", "Champions 2000", "The Ultimate Tapton Brass", "Merry Christmas Everybody" and "Show Stoppers".
The sale of these goes towards the Band's ongoing project of fundraising for desperately needed instruments.
The band is proud to have been sponsored by
Interserve Facilities Management Ltd
for the cost of their weekly rehearsal premises.
Without this support the band would be unable to maintain its current activities.