Director of Music

BWE has flourished as a wind orchestra and grown during the last sixteen years under the direction of Shea Lolin. Highlights are listed on our web site. Shea has devised distinctive and adventurous programmes made up of arrangements of light music, classical repertoire and works by contemporary composers. He has successfully engaged members in the choice of repertoire.

There is only a very limited off-the-shelf repertoire available for the ensemble so, thanks to Shea, BWE now plays pieces that have been arranged or composed for us. BWE has commissioned over twenty original works and over two hundred arrangements as described on our web site. The highlight of our next concert will be a new work that we have commissioned from Judith Bingham OBE.

BWE rehearses on Tuesday evenings at St George’s Church, Bloomsbury for about 45 weeks in a year. In normal times the ensemble presents two major concerts a year as well as performing less formally in garden squares or on band stands in the summer.

Following the Covid lockdowns, BWE resumed rehearsals with reduced numbers in our new venue from May 2021 helped by the Making Music guidance on how to proceed. The ensemble performed on the Victoria Park bandstand in July. Shea’s final concert will be at the end of November. The ensemble expects to be back to full strength by January 2022.

The Group welcomes the interchange of ideas and collaborative activities involving the music directors of the BWE and the BB.

BMG and its two ensembles are run by a committee selected from the members. The committee is responsible for all administrative arrangements and the finances. The Group is funded largely by members’ subscriptions supplemented by gift aid and orchestra tax relief.

In addition to the fee for rehearsals, the BWE pays its director of music concert fees and fees for arranging or composing new music.

Principal duties of the BWE music director

• To conduct enjoyable rehearsals for an enthusiastic but varied group of amateur players.

• To develop an adventurous repertoire for BWE by making selections from the music library, purchasing music, or commissioning original works and arrangements.

• To prepare BWE for concerts (minimum of 2 per year) and to conduct the ensemble in these performances.

• To arrange a replacement conductor for rehearsals in case of planned or short term absence and inform the committee when this is to occur.

• To ensure that the highest possible standards are achieved at rehearsals and concerts, consistent with the BWE’s musical and financial resources.

Essential attributes:

• Previous experience of conducting

• Excellent communication skills

• Experience of working with amateur musicians, and the ability to inspire them to perform beyond their expectations

• A relaxed and encouraging manner in rehearsal

• A sense of humour, and a firm belief that making music should be enjoyable

Desirable attributes:

• Experience of playing a wind or brass instrument

• Familiarity with the wind music repertoire

• Ability to arrange music

• An interest in commissioning new music for wind orchestra.