History of the band

The band was originally formed in 1912 and according to former bandsmen was made up of members of the local Llwydcoed AFC. However during the Second World War rehearsals were suspended and the band restarted in 1947 with Will Woods as conductor and teacher.

In the 1950s, Bryn Davies took over the baton, and in the following years, the band had many contest successes, notably the C.I.S.W.O. championships in the Second Section in 1973 and again in the Third Section in 1983, and twice appearing at the National Championships.

During the 1990s, the band dwindled to a handful of players and ceased to compete in 1997.

The band struggled to survive for a few years, until 2002 when Alan Davies took over the musical leadership of the band. During this period of time the band then rose from the Fourth Section to the third via 3 successive appearances at the National Finals in Harrogate. During this period the band also produced its first professional recording, 'Memories' which features a selection of easy listening favourites arranged for brass band as well as original works.

In 2008, Rhodri Griffiths joined the band as Musical Director and remained in post until April of 2009. The band recently appointed Carl Saunders as its musical leader and competed in its first contest under his leadership at Ebbw Vale in May 2009. The band achieved a creditable second place finish in the traditional start to the contesting calendar in Wales. Unfortunately, Carl could not maintain his busy work schedule and leadership of an ambitious band hungry for success. So the band turned to Gary Davies, who has since led the to two first place positions and to clinch the third section championship in 2009.

With more and more new players joining the band, the future and continued success of the band is looking bright. Llwydcoed Band aims to be a community-centered band supporting the life of the local area whilst offering players from a wide and diverse background and location an opportunity to play in a challenging and stimulating musical environment.

The band is proud of the level of local support and encouragement that it now enjoys and is particularly grateful for the financial support of local individuals and businesses. We are also extremely thankful for all the hard work and hundreds of hours of voluntary commitment that has been given to the band by the players, supporters, committee members and musical directors over the last 97 years.