Heralded as the world’s greatest Brass Band, this August the legendary Black Dyke Band will return to Australia for the first time in 21 years. Conducted by Dr. Nicholas J Childs and joined by special guest James Morrison*

, the Black Dyke Band will tour Perth, Adelaide, Canberra, Geelong, Ballarat, Melbourne, Brisbane, Newcastle and Sydney from 8 to 19 August.

With an extraordinary musical history spanning more than 150 years, Black Dyke Band is not only the most recorded band in the world with over 300 recordings, but also the most successful contesting band in the world having won the British Open 29 times and the National Championships 21 times (most recently last year).

Noted in the local paper the Halifax Courier as having formed in the Yorkshire village of Queenshead – later to become Queensbury – in 1855, the Black Dyke Band has long been considered at the forefront internationally of Brass Band activity, from recordings to touring, competitions and composition.

Black Dyke Band’s long history has seen it record music across all formats – from cylinders to 78” records, LP’s, cassettes, CDs and DVDs – and record with the likes of The Beatles (appearing on the hit record Yellow Submarine), Peter Gabriel and Tori Amos. The band has also featured on television and movie soundtracks (including Babe 2 and UK series Ground

Force) and appeared on stage with Elton John, Phil Smith, Evelyn Glennie, Lesley Garrett and many more.

Black Dyke Band features many of the world’s leading Baritone, Tenor Horn, Cornet, Euphonium, Trombone, Bass players and Percussionists, including Brett Baker, Richard Marshall, David Thornton, Alex Kerwin, Paul Lovatt‐Cooper and Sandy Smith.

To quote The Independent Review, Black Dyke Band audiences ‘leave a concert knowing that you were at not just a performance but an event, and you feel privileged’ (27 November 2008).