“It’s never too late to follow your passion.” Anne Howorth

Growing up in the North of England, I was surrounded by the glorious sound of the village brass band. Sunday afternoon concerts in the park, Sunday morning hymns at church, and brass concerts in the town’s cathedral. The sound of a euphonium gave me goose bumps –– the cornet was so pure. I sat in concert halls thinking how wonderful it would be to play an instrument like that.

Somewhere around my 45th birthday I was thumbing through the newspaper and saw a cornet for sale. I remember going to someone’s home to buy it and the owner encouraging me to play a little so I could check the tone of the instrument.

I was a little embarrassed –– I had no idea how to play the cornet. I left with the instrument, saying, “Oh, no need, I am sure it plays just fine.” After hours of trying to get a sound out of it, I plucked up my courage and took myself and the cornet to the local brass band rehearsal. I sat listening in awe, eventually introducing myself and my new, unplayed cornet. I had just bought it and I wanted to learn how to play. To my surprise, the room was full of tutors willing to teach me.

I was given a sheet of paper with five musical notes written on it (C D E F and G) with the fingering for each note given underneath. It was suggested I go home to practice. It took weeks of perseverance before I could produce a sound worthy of returning to the band rehearsal. Next, I was given a simple hymn tune to learn.

By then I was hooked. I practiced every spare moment. My children can attest to that. After mastering the hymn tune, I was invited to sit in with the back row cornets. This is how I learned to read music.

My cornet was soon replaced with a professional cornet given to me by the band—however, I was far from being a professional player. But within the year, I was an official member of the band playing concerts, It was a dream come true. During the summer of ’95, I traveled to Europe, playing many concerts with the band— Oh, what joy!

Time passed. By 2000, my children graduated school and longed to return to the U.S. and the California sunshine. So I rented my home and moved back to California. I remember the last night in the local pub with all the band members full of tearful goodbyes. When I handed over the cornet, I was told, “Oh no, you need to keep it so you can start a brass band over in the Colonies.” The cornet sat on my lap all the way from Manchester, England to Los Angeles.

I missed the band and was desperate to find a music ensemble where I could play my cornet. I eventually plucked up the courage to walk in on an orchestra rehearsal at Ventura College. During the break, I showed my cornet to principal trumpet player, Maestro Randy Jones. He was intrigued, wanting to know more about the British Brass Band. It wasn’t long before Randy suggested starting a British Brass Band in Ventura—after all, I had the knowledge and he knew many talented brass players. So, in the summer of 2005, the Ventura British Brass band was born.

We started with eight members rehearsing in the back of Henson’s music shop in Oxnard. The word was out and interest grew among brass players. A brass player in an orchestra may take along a book to read because those pesky strings and woodwinds get all the melody parts. But this band was all brass—wonderful! All we needed was music. During my search for a brass band in California, I came across the Golden State British Brass Band located in Long Beach. Not sure whether our adventure would take off, I decided to ask if I could borrow a little music. We had a total of six pieces to rehearse. The band grew, and more jazz trumpet players put down their trumpets and bought cornets.

And we have grown!

More music was needed so that year I took two trips to England, filling up my suitcase with scores of music donated from the brass band in England. Since then we have tripled in size, and our music library has grown to hold over 250 scores. Our music repertoire is unusually flexible, with varied concert programs that consist of anything from original works, orchestral transcripts and featured soloists, to novelty items, marches, Broadway tunes, medleys and hymn tunes arrangements.

Our mission is to give emphasis to the development of the brass band movement through education to attract and inspire young musicians. Our musical goal is to explore brass band literature to achieve the best possible sound to provide entertainment for our audiences and enjoyment for musicians of all ages. Our 27-piece ensemble boasts many talented musicians from varied styles of playing. We rehearse weekly and perform for various venues in and around Ventura County. Every month we perform at the Channel Island Yacht Club in Oxnard, California.

At age 72, I am still playing with a heart-filled passion. And this year I finally fulfilled my dream of playing a duet with our co-founder Randy Jones.

You can read more about the unique sound of the Ventura British Brass at www.venturabritishbrass.com.