Brass bands are an important aspect of British music.
Many bands were formed as part of the social life of industry workers in the 1800s, such as miners. Others included village church bands and military bands. The region saw the establishment of some of the earliest in the country.
The bands played for social events such as dances and concerts as well as competitions, from which many received national acclaim. Still popular today, events such as 'Brass' (Durham's International Festival) attracts over 100,000 visitors.
The second object to view here is a digital story. Tyne & Wear Archives & Museums collect not only physical objects but the stories behind them, captured in written records, oral history (spoken recordings) and digital stories (films). See the link below to the digital story, Memories of Durham Miner’s Gala, 2005, produced as part of the CultureShock! project and now part of the museum collection.
Culture Shock! is currently one of the largest digital storytelling projects to have taken place in the world.
Brass instrument on display at Sunderland Museum & Winter Gardens, Coal Mining Gallery
www.sunderland.gov.uk
CultureShock! digital story, Memories of Durham Miner’s Gala, 2005, Tyne & Wear Archives & Museums
www.cultureshock.org.uk
