{"id":14,"date":"2013-05-04T11:05:07","date_gmt":"2013-05-04T11:05:07","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/lltb.co.uk\/?page_id=14"},"modified":"2026-07-30T13:58:27","modified_gmt":"2026-07-30T12:58:27","slug":"history","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/lltb.co.uk\/?page_id=14","title":{"rendered":"Band History"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Llandudno Town Band History<\/h1>\n\n\n\n

Founded in 1910, Llandudno Town Band has played an important role in the musical life of North Wales for more than a century. This page explores the band’s history, milestones, performances and achievements, documenting its development from its early years to the present day.<\/p>\n\n\n

A Brief History of Llandudno Town Band<\/h2>\n

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Edwardian Llandudno<\/h2>\n
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Llandudno in the 1890s<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

In the early years of the twentieth century, the seaside town of Llandudno had established itself as one of the most fashionable holiday resorts of Edwardian Britain. The town was still expanding rapidly under the management of the Llandudno Urban District Council, who kept a firm grip on all developments, facilities and entertainments available for visitors.<\/p>\n

From 1879, \u00a3100 was made available annually from the Council budget for the services of a band to provide outdoor entertainment around the town; each year, the Council considered tenders from various Bandmasters, and awarded exclusive rights to one band for the following season.<\/p>\n

The Birth of Llandudno Town Band<\/h2>\n
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The St Tudno Band<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

However, in 1908 the local St Tudno Silver Band, who had never been awarded the annual contract, wrote\u00a0to the Council with an unusual proposition: if the Council would pay for a Bandmaster, the Band would\u00a0provide any music for any occasion as required by the Council, and, additionally, would make over all\u00a0their instruments to be held in Trust by the Council.\u00a0The idea was considered half-heartedly for two years, but eventually, after the standard of the currently engaged\u00a0ensemble became unacceptably low, the Council decided to invest their year\u2019s \u00a3100 in the\u00a0St. Tudno Band. On 31st August 1910, the Trust deed was officially signed and sealed, and the St. Tudno\u00a0Silver Band became the Llandudno Town Band.<\/p>\n

There were many applicants for the post of Bandmaster, but the final choice fell on Mr. Francis Lucio\u00a0Traversi, a New Zealander passionate about brass bands, who was at that time the Bandmaster of the\u00a0Barrow Shipyard Band. He set about improving the playing standard of the Band and rehearsing a repertoire\u00a0for the summer season.<\/p>\n

Lucio Traversi Takes Charge<\/h2>\n
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Lucio Traversi<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

There were many mutterings about the cost to the Council of running the Band, for although deck chairs\u00a0were charged for and collections were taken at every performance, there were many initial expenses\u00a0to be borne, such as uniforms and music. The band members themselves were paid each time they attended,\u00a0and the Council was concerned that they would be subsiding this enterprise at a loss. But they\u00a0needn\u2019t have worried: under Mr Traversi\u2019s direction, the Band was a huge success and was soon paying\u00a0its own annual expenses and repaying Council loans for their equipment. The standard of playing improved\u00a0steadily and the Band became one of the principal attractions of the resort.<\/p>\n

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Llandudno Town Band 1911<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

A perennial moan was the lack of a proper bandstand in the town, and many discussions were held, and\u00a0shelved, about such a provision. The main problem was that none of the hotels wanted it outside their\u00a0premises, because of the noise and inconvenience to their patrons. Eventually a mobile, horse-drawn\u00a0bandstand was commissioned. Nick-named \u2018The Juggernaut\u2019, it was trundled very noisily to a new location\u00a0every day.\u00a0The Band played every evening from Monday to Saturday at various locations, from the\u00a0pier at North Parade to Craig y Don.<\/p>\n

The First World War<\/h2>\n

Mr. Traversi had established a learners\u2019 band almost as soon as he had arrived in Llandudno, and this\u00a0proved to be prophetic, when several of the players volunteered for Lord Kitchener\u2019s Army in late 1914.\u00a0It was feared that the Band would be unable to continue during the War years, and this would have a\u00a0serious effect on the touristic fortunes of the town, but soon the young boys from the learners\u2019 band were\u00a0able to step in and keep the show going. Llandudno was one of the very few British bands who managed\u00a0to keep a full programme going during the War.<\/p>\n

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Llandudno Town Band 1921<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Fortunately, all but one of the enlisted men returned after the War, and the Band embarked on a period\u00a0of rebuilding and development. By now, the years\u2019 activities were well established – every evening on the\u00a0bandstand (wherever it was) from Whitsuntide to the end of September, and weekly concerts in the Town\u00a0Hall during the winter months. The standard of musicianship continued to increase and the Band won\u00a0several prizes in local eisteddfodau.<\/p>\n

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A Permanent Bandstand<\/h2>\n
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The New Bandstand 1926<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The perambulating bandstand finally became unusable in the mid-twenties, and at last the Council\u00a0provided a permanent base for concerts. The present bandstand on the Promenade was inaugurated\u00a0on Whit Monday 1926 and became the nightly venue for concerts, hymn-singing and even crooning\u00a0competitions. Audiences were huge – around 1,000 deck-chairs were set out, and filled, every evening,\u00a0and many more people stood behind and on the Promenade. The Council, evidently satisfied that their\u00a0gamble was paying dividends for the town, also assisted by providing daytime employment for several of\u00a0the musicians, as well as for the Bandmaster.<\/p>\n

The Second World War<\/h2>\n

On the outbreak of the Second World War, Mr. Traversi started a learners\u2019 group each autumn, and the\u00a0boys regularly graduated to the senior band to fill gaps left by men joining the Forces or engaged in vital\u00a0war work. In addition to the nightly Promenade concerts, the Band turned out on many occasions to\u00a0support fundraising events such as \u2018Salute the Soldier\u2019 and \u2018Wings for Victory\u2019. The \u201cWarship Week\u201d effort\u00a0eventually resulted in the commissioning of HMS Llandudno, a 656-ton Bangor-class minesweeper, built in\u00a01941.<\/p>\n

Post-war Success<\/h2>\n

In 1947 Mr. Traversi retired as Bandmaster due to ill-health, and was replaced by a well-known tenor horn\u00a0virtuoso, Mr. William (Bill) Skelton. After continuing the Band\u2019s traditional activities for five years,\u00a0he moved on and was replaced by a long-time member of the Band, Mr. Robin Williams.<\/p>\n

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Promenade Concerts 1960s<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Under his\u00a0leadership, the Band qualified for the finals of the Daily Herald National Brass Band Championship in\u00a0London two years in succession, winning the second prize in the fourth section in 1956. Mr. Williams also\u00a0developed the evening entertainments on the Promenade to include talent competitions and Family\u00a0Nights – bands have to move with the times! These programmes were very popular right up to Mr. Williams\u2019\u00a0retirement in 1972.<\/p>\n

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The Modern Era<\/h2>\n
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Since then, conductors have come and gone, but a unifying force in the Band from the 1940s until recent years was Mr. George H. Brookes, who, having joined as one of Mr. Traversi\u2019s 1940 band of learners, served for many years as solo cornet, solo euphonium, learner\u2019s group leader and Bandmaster. Indeed, several members played with the Band from the 1940s and 1950s into the 2000s – David Jones, John Edwards, Walter Shaw, John Ridler and Hughie Hughes. In 2000 George H. Brookes was awarded an M.B.E. for services to the Band and the Town of Llandudno.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Centenary Concert 2010<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/p>\n

2010 was the Band\u2019s Centenary Year and there were several events to celebrate the occasion, including a gala concert in Venue Cymru with the euphonium soloist David Childs. During the concert the Band was presented with an illuminated address by the Mayor of Llandudno conferring on the members the honorary \u2018freedom\u2019 of the town. In 2011 the Band had the unique opportunity to record another CD<\/a>, this time at the famous Abbey Road Studios in London.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

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In 2018 Andrew Jones was appointed our Musical Director and under his direction the Band takes an active role in many civic occasions in Llandudno including Remembrance Sunday in November; concerts and charity fundraisers; various celebrations in the town such as the Great Orme Tram 120th<\/sup> anniversary in 2022 and of course we continue the tradition of presenting bandstand concerts on the promenade throughout the summer months.<\/p>\n

For much more in depth information about the Band and our history, The Band on the Prom<\/a>\u00a0by Susan M. Wolfendale (a former member) is a highly recommend book which draws on unprecedented access to our archive of documents and photographs.<\/p>\n

You may also be interested in our Gallery<\/a> of photographs taken over the years, and a selection of Archive Cuttings<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n

Find Out More<\/h2>\n\n\n\n