The History of Raunds Temperance

 

The band was formed by the Temperance Society in 1886, when an old set of instruments was purchased from Rushden Temperance Band.  Twelve months after the band was established, they took part in their first concert which was held in Upper Dean to celebrate Queen Victoria’s Jubilee in 1887.  It was to be a further 4 years before the band could afford to purchase new instruments.  From the outset the Band very much of a family concern with several members of some families playing at any one time, as is still the case today.  Here is an early photograph taken soon after the formation of the Band.

Raunds produced a number of musical groups in the late 1800’s and early 1900’s as photographs exist showing the Raunds Town Band in about 1870, and Raunds Men’s Own Brotherhood Band and Raunds Adult School Prize Choir both taken around 1909.

In 1905, the Band led the march to London by the footwear workers who were fighting for decent conditions and a working wage.

The band has brought a great deal of credit to the small town of Raunds, and has won many prizes in national competitions.  For example, in the 1920’s they achieved a 2nd place at Crystal Palace and a 1st and 4th at Skegness, also winning a Deportment prize of £110 which was a fortune in those days.  In the 1930’s, 1st prize went to the band in the League of Bands Contest of Great Britain.

During the war years, the band survived and carried on playing only through the dedication of a handful of older men who were too old to serve and a group of up and coming 10 to 12 year old boys eager to progress their talents.

The picture below shows the Band playing in the VE Day celebrations held in  Raund’s to mark the end of the war.

After 1952, when Raunds Temperance Band last competed at Championship level, the band fell in the rankings, finally competing in the Second Section in 1975 before withdrawing from competition altogether.  In 1983, and with a very young band, it was decided to re-commence competing again in the Fourth Section, but the result was not good and this strategy was dismissed again.

A turning point in the Band's fortunes came when Musical Director, John Fletcher, was appointed in 1996.  John was born in the Rhondda Valley and started playing the trombone at the age of 8, joining Cory Junior Band. He joined the army in 1986 where his musical achievements led him to the Principal Trombone seat in the Queens Royal Lancers

With his enthusiasm, he took over a small group of players and began the task of re-building band and contesting again.  Under his guidance, Raunds are possibly the biggest recent success story in the Midlands area, having risen from 4th section in the year 2000 to accepting their invitation to join the areas elite bands in the Championship Section from January 2007.

However, in May 2006 John resigned due to personal circumstances before he had the chance to take the Band forward to the Championship Section challenges.  We would like to place on record our gratitude for all the success and enjoyment he gave the Band over the 10 years he was in this position. The level of banding achieved was unprecedented over such a relatively short period of time.  We hope that John's time with the band will be remembered by all members of the band with great affection and admiration for the camaraderie experienced and the results achieved and we wish him good luck in the future.

In October 2006 the band appointed Jonathan Mott as its’ new Musical Director. Full details are on the musical directors page of the site