The Stewarton Learning Partnership Bands concert this evening was a tremendous success with each of the three bands playing to a very high standard to a delighted audience of family and friends.

Under the direction of Alan Friel, the evening began with the Primary 7 band playing together for the last time before they move up to the Academy after the summer and join the Junior Wind Ensemble. In addition to their full band work, the pupils from Dunlop, Kilmaurs, Lainshaw and Nether Robertland Primary Schools took the audience on a tour of the band with solos and small ensembles from each section of the band.

The Junior Wind Ensemble, who recently performed very successfully at Loudoun Castle Theme Park, delighted the audience with their rendition of Pirates of the Caribbean, by K. Badelt, Go, Go, Go Joseph, by A. Lloyd Webber and Lonely Bull, by H. Alpert.

The programme of band music was supplemented with solo performances by the winners of the senior and junior sections of Stewarton Academy's Young Musician of the Year competition. Pianist, Matthew Allison, played "Consolation" by Liszt and Eilidh McQuarrie performed "As long as he needs me" from Oliver on her saxophone, accompanied by Greg McGuire, the Principal Teacher of Music and Performing Arts.

The evening drew to a close with the Gold Award winning Senior Wind Ensemble. They performed Encanto, by R. Smith, which had formed part of their award winning programme in Cardiff in April before whisking the audience away to America with West Side Story Suite, L. Bernstein, and finishing with Abba on Broadway, arranged by M. Brown and an arrangement of Flashdance - known to the band as the Gaviscon Tune.

During the evening Alan Friel was presented with a gift on behalf of the Senior Band by Joanne Robertson. And the Stewarton Band Support Group launched their Stewarton learning Partnership Family and Friends scheme which aims to raise at least £4000 over the next year to support the learning experience of members of the Primary, Junior and Senior Bands.