Junior Band Leader:
John Squires-Evans e-mail
me
John is a
local lad who started playing the cornet and piano when
he was 7 years old. His main love is now the flugel horn
but also plays cornet, trumpet, piccolo trumpet, violin,
viola, cello and piano. His party trick is the
post-horn. John has over 25 years’ experience of playing
in Brass and Military Bands, Orchestras and various
Brass and String ensembles.
As a teenager John played for
Poulton Band, Freckleton Band and the Lancashire Youth
Band. He then enlisted into the Army at 16 and after 15
months training he joined The Royal Artillery Band as a
viola and cornet player. He served, performed and
travelled in many countries including Gibralter and
active service in the 1st Gulf War.
John then took time out of the Army
to come back home and to study Band Musicianship at
Salford University. In 1994 he moved across the Pennines
to do Brass Band Studies at Barnsley College. During his
time in Yorkshire he enjoyed a very successful couple of
years with UES Stocksbridge before joining the Brighouse
and Raistrick Brass Band. He was also a member of
Harlequin Brass and the Pioneer Brass Quartet.
In the summer of 1995 John
travelled extensively in Europe and completed a coast to
coast tour of Australia. In 1997 he rejoined the Army in
the King’s Division Normandy Band. With them he toured
and performed in many countries including France,
Germany, Luxembourg, Holland, Belgium, Cyprus, Northern
and Southern Ireland, Bosnia, The Falkland Islands and
Canada. He decided in 2004 to retire from the Army and
follow his passion of Youth Music and teaching.
John now has his own Music Service
teaching Brass and Strings at nine local Primary
Schools. He is the Music School co-ordinator at St
Aidan’s C of E Technology College, helping to re-build
the Wind Band, Brass Group and teaching Brass and
Strings. He is also the Brass Peripatetic at Hodgson
High School.
As well as conducting Poulton Youth
Band John runs the large Junior Band, Over Wyre Brass
that has over 100 members. He also runs a Brass Ensemble
in Hambleton. This is an adult ten piece that plays at
weddings, for fun and special occasions, mainly at
Christmas. It also has a Junior Section made up from
John’s best private pupils.
Since leaving the Army John is
extremely honoured to be a member of the House Staff for
the National Children’s Brass Band of Great Britain. For
the last 2 years he has also been a member of the House
Staff for the National Youth Brass Band Easter courses.
He says that working with the best young players in
Great Britain is the highlight of his year. Watching and
learning from the very best tutors and conductors in the
World is a fantastic experience. John is massively proud
that some of his pupils and members of Poulton Youth
Band have been successful in gaining places in both
these fabulous bands.
John has been playing for Leyland
Band for the last year but also enjoyed playing for
Wingates and Freckleton in the 3 years previous to that.
Along with his wife Tracey, John has toured Luxembourg a
number of times as well as America and Canada with the
Young Ambassadors Brass Band of Great Britain, playing
solo cornet and flugel.
John and Tracey have been married
for almost 6 years and in December 2008 their daughter
Jasmine Maya was born. Tracey is the Repiano cornet
player with Poulton-Le-Fylde Band and a Grade 8 pianist.
John’s goals for the future are to
continue arranging Masterclasses for his Junior Bands.
Currently Richard Evans, Quattro Brass and 2008 BBC
Young Musician of the Year Peter Moore have visited. He
is planning to start a Brass Music Festival and solo
competition in the Over Wyre area. He hopes to take
Poulton Youth Band to a contest; a March and Hymn Tune
first then possibly a larger competition next year. He
would love to take them to the National Youth
Championships one day.
Of course it is more of a challenge to just keep young people happy and interested. John stresses that the fun side of playing and performing is more important than anything else.