Brass band tunes up for Christmas fundraising concert

Lofthouse 2000 Brass Band is gearing up for their annual Christmas concert to raise money for the band and Yorkshire Ambulance Service (YAS) Charity.

‘Brass for YAS’ will feature a range of genres including film music, swing music, rock music and more and will take place on Saturday, 30 November at St Austin’s Theatre, Wentworth Terrace, Wakefield with doors opening at 6.30pm for a start time of 7.30pm.    

The band’s musical director, Lee Whitworth, is also a Community Defibrillation Trainer with YAS and sees first-hand how the charity’s work helps to save lives across Yorkshire.  

Lee said: “I could write a plethora of reasons why we want to support the YAS Charity. Both I and one of our front-row cornet players work for the Trust, and this concert is a great way for the local community to come together to support both their ambulance service and their local brass band.  

“Music is close to my heart as I spent 25 years as a military musician, travelling the world playing cornet and saxophone. I am proud that the band I lead wants to support the YAS Charity, and that we have YAS staff playing within our ranks.   

“Christmas is also a special time as it allows us to spend quality time with friends and family and music plays a big part in good quality mental health and enjoyment.”    

Carey Taylor, Head of YAS Charity, added: “We are delighted to see this popular event return to Wakefield and we’re very grateful to the Lofthouse 2000 Brass Band for supporting YAS Charity once again.   

“This concert promises to be a night of festive fun for all the family and a great way to support YAS staff and volunteers as well as raising vital funds to provide life-saving equipment and training to the community, so everyone knows what to do in an emergency situation.”       

Tickets can be purchased via the band’s website, or people can contact the YAS Charity to arrange tickets. If there are any tickets left on the night, they can be purchased at the door.  

The YAS Charity supports the work of YAS by funding projects which go above and beyond those funded by the NHS to further enhance staff support through health and wellbeing initiatives.   

The charity also aims to enable everyone to respond to a medical emergency in the appropriate way by supporting projects such as community public access defibrillators, free first aid and cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) training. By supporting community engagement initiatives, the charity aspires to reduce health inequalities across Yorkshire.   

The proceeds from the concert will be split between YAS Charity and the Lofthouse 2000 Brass Band.

To buy tickets, costing £8 each, visit the Lofthouse 2000 Brass Band website.   

To arrange tickets through YAS Charity email: yas.charity@nhs.net.