By 
MEMBERS of Strabane Brass Band had a welcome January boost following news of a jump in the world rankings of a mammoth 23 places!
Compiled by website 4barsrest.com, the rankings show the best brass bands across the UK and Ireland, and are decided by the amount of competitions entered each year and the positioning of a band within those competitions.
Chair and trustee of Strabane Brass Band, Tommy Barr, was elated by the news, saying, “It’s wonderful to see our position in the world rankings jump up 23 places to position 155. People might say ‘sure you’re still 155’ but make no mistake, that jump is nothing to be sniffed at, although I will admit things could always get better and the only way is up.”
Mr Barr credits the climb to the closeness and hard work that the band put into every practice and performance.
“The thing about our band is we are extremely hard working and work very well as a team and getting into competitions each year only serves to enhance our performances and keeps everyone on their toes to be the best that we can.
“Not only that, the morale within the band is second to none; there’s always fantastic vibe within the band and with up-and-coming musicians in our grassworks team.
“This year, we’ll have six younger musicians making the jump up who will be mentored by current band members which is vitally important for the band’s future. No matter how good we are, if the next generation isn’t coming through then it stands to reason we’ll fail eventually so it’s essential we work to ensure it doesn’t happen.”
While Mr Barr admits the jump in rankings is nice, at its heart, Strabane Bass Band is all about one thing – community.
He added, “This year the band will hopefully have 20 members, both young and old, at the St Patrick’s Day celebrations in the town, which is only one of the engagements we have coming up in 2026. It’s about bringing music to the community and the social side of things.
“Rising in the rankings is a great achievement but is the enjoyment we get and give to the community which makes what we do really special.”
