The RGS Big Band
Directed by saxophone teacher Jay Craig, formerly a member of the BBC Big Band and the Sid Lawrence Orchestra – meets on Mondays after school for an hour.
Their repertoire is firmly in the classic big band tradition, with which they have had great success this year, reaching the finals of the National Festival at Birmingham. They play regularly in school concerts, and are often asked to play for school functions and outside events.
Band Member, Tom Lane (Trumpet) writes:
"The RGS Big Band is home to the senior jazz musicians in the school. Having been under the direction of Mr Ben Sampler for 4 years, his departure from the school left us with a slight problem – we had no conductor.
The RGS Big Band
We needn’t have worried. Up stepped none other than Mr Jay Craig, member of the BBC Big Band, ably assisted by Mr Richard Bolton and under this joint leadership, the band has gone from strength to strength.
Mr Craig has brought an indispensable knowledge on a vast variety of jazz styles, ranging from the 1920s right through to modern times. He knows what he wants, and makes sure we meet the requirements! As a result, in July 2007, the band travelled to Birmingham’s Adrian Boult Hall to take part in the finals of the National Festival of Music for Youth. This was the first time for many years that the band successfully got through the regional rounds so everyone was pumped and ready to show the world what we were made of!
After what we all thought was one of our best performances of the year, the adjudication panel were highly complimentary of our playing, despite the fact that we didn’t receive an award. However, it was a hugely enjoyable day, and a thrilling experience to finally reach the finals of the Festival.
The Big Band can also be heard regularly throughout the year at most of the school concerts, including the Open Air Extravaganza every summer, along with performing in the centre of Wycombe as part of the Wycombe Arts Festival."
