Industry News

One of the region’s best-loved cultural events returns this year with a headline performance by Bill Ryder-Jones.

Organised by Durham County Council and supported by Arts Council England, Durham Brass Festival won ‘Performance of the Year’ at the 2024 North East Culture Awards for Public Service Broadcasting featuring NASUWT Riverside Band and Felling Male Voice Choir.

This year, it will see Bill perform his critically acclaimed and much-loved album ‘Iechyd Da’ in full, for a special, one-off show with the NASUWT Riverside Band at Gala Durham.

The festival will also feature further spectacular performances including Barry Hyde, Simon Armitage and LYR, Brassed On, NETOA Wurlitzer and Stanhope Silver Band and The Fairey Band which will, for the first time ever, bring Jeremy Deller’s ‘Acid Brass’ to Durham. There will also be free concerts, community activities and a full week of lively street bands when the festival returns from Sunday 13 to Sunday 20 July.

Taking inspiration from the brass band heritage of Durham and celebrating brass music in all its forms, the annual Durham Brass Festival brings together all musical genres into an eight-day festival taking place across County Durham including headline performances in iconic locations.

The festival’s outreach programme includes hosting community workshops; free concerts in schools, communities and care homes across County Durham; as well as outdoor performances with street bands.

Alison Clark, Durham County Council’s head of culture, sport and tourism, said: “Durham Brass Festival has grown into one of our region’s most popular cultural events over the years and we’re delighted to bring it back in 2025.

“The line-up is truly stunning with Bill Ryder-Jones well-known to indie fans from his days in The Coral, as will be Barry Hyde from the North East’s own The Futureheads. Having them perform with the NASUWT Riverside Band and Durham Miners Association Brass Band, and Easington Colliery Band playing at Redhills, typifies what this festival is all about – showcasing talent and shining a new light on our North East heritage.  

“Having the Stanhope Silver Band and the Brassed On event further show our commitment to supporting musicians from all over the region. We’ll also be taking brass bands into more than 20 care homes across the country – further evidence of why we can rightly claim to be The Culture County.

“We hope everyone really enjoys Brass 2025 and that, as in previous years, it can provide a boost to our businesses through increased footfall and greater profile; supporting economic growth.”

Released in 2024, ‘Iechyd Da’ is Ryder-Jones’ most ambitious record to date, a culmination of years of exploration. At times joyous and grand, at others intimate and heartbreaking, the past few years spent producing other artists has provided that gentle nudge to expand into new territory, from kids’ choirs and tender strings to dramatically re-contextualised disco samples. Following his recent new arrangements for the BBC Concert Orchestra in January, ‘lechyd Da’ will be rearranged for Durham Brass Festival this summer in a unique commission with The NASUWT Riverside Band for a truly unique and not to be missed performance.

Bill said: "This is huge. The Riverside Band are huge and evidently very historic. I've never worked with anything remotely close to that. Brass can be a very emotional experience, I heard that when Richard Hawley played the festival he was quite overwhelmed by playing with a brass band. I imagine he's not a man who sheds many tears. I associate brass with some of my favourite pieces of music, who knows why something like the French horns on God Only Knows do what they do, but I’ve heard the Riverside Brass Band described as a juggernaut that is capable of powering the music.”

The Futureheads’ frontman Barry Hyde will perform music from his forthcoming concept solo album, ‘Miners’ Ballads,’ with the Durham Miners Association Brass Band. Commissioned by Sunderland City Council and Paul Emerson, the record is inspired by the coal mining heritage of the North East with emphasis on Sunderland and Washington. Announcing the album in December with lead single ‘The Miner’s Life’, Barry described it as “a traditional collier’s song about the dangers, hardships and bravery of those that worked underground". Musically, the album - which Hyde self-produced, engineered and played most of the instruments on - sits somewhere between his 2016 album ‘Malody’ and the more acoustic and folk moments of The Futureheads.

Barry said: “Playing with brass is a big challenge because it involves having to relearn a lot of what you do because musically the way it’s arranged is unique for brass bands. I think to learn how to play like that takes a lot of time and dedication and a real absorption into the history of it all. For me, the opportunity to perform with maybe 30 plus additional musicians who are all trying to embellish these songs is an absolute privilege.

“What a fantastic opportunity to showcase this record. It’s a dream come true, I'm absolutely over the moon.”

On 18 July, the festival will host BBC Radio 4’s The Verb with presenter Ian McMillan, featuring Simon Armitage and LYR performing ‘Firm As A Rock’ with Easington Colliery Band. Combining powerful spoken word, soaring vocals and transcendent harmonics, LYR has attracted a devoted and growing fan base around its trademark sound and has released two critically acclaimed albums on major labels, Call In The Crash Team and The Ultraviolet Age, as well as the cult album Unnatural History. The band played the festival three years ago, performing a spellbinding show in Durham Cathedral, and returns this year to play Redhills Durham Miners Hall, a poignant setting for an unmissable highlight of the festival.

Celebrating the incredible versatility of brass, Brassed On will present a show which pairs North East artists including Faithful Johannes, Amateur Ornithologist and Liz Corney, which will create exciting and fresh new music together, unique to the festival. The performance takes place on 19 July and is in partnership with BBC Music Introducing and NARC. Magazine. 

Performing on 19 July are the NETOA Wurlitzer and Stanhope Silver Band. Howard Beaumont, together with the Stanhope Silver Band will perform a wide variety of music - old and new, popular and classical with world famous NETOA Wurlitzer.

On 20 July, one of the world’s finest brass bands, The Fairey Band presents a spectacular concert of music and animation, performing a brass arrangement of Pictures at an Exhibition to accompany animated interpretations of Mussorgsky’s masterpiece. The animations, created by Ion Concert Media in collaboration with the USC School of Cinematic Arts, bring Mussorgsky’s musical response to Hartmann’s visual to life, offering an immersive experience filled with rich fantasy, whimsiness, and adventure.

In a first for Durham Brass Festival and also performing on 20 July, The Fairey Band presents Acid Brass, its take on Acid House anthems with a traditional brass band. Founded in 1997 and the brainchild of Jeremy Deller, the critically acclaimed concept stems from the underlying social and political links between the two movements. Nearly thirty years on, the band continues to reinvent Acid Brass with a set that includes new arrangements and a mix of the best acid house anthems with 90s house classics.

Durham Brass Festival is a key part of Durham County Council’s festivals and events programme, which cements Durham’s position as the ‘Culture County’ and reflects the local authority’s commitment to culture-led regeneration.

The festival won ‘Performance of the Year’ at the 2024 North East Culture Awards for Public Service Broadcasting featuring NASUWT Riverside Band and Felling Male Voice Choir.

Brass boosts the local economy by attracting tens of thousands of visitors and raises the county’s reputation as a cultural destination, a key aim of the County Durham Inclusive Economic Strategy.

The line-up in full is as follows:

14 July         

Barry Hyde performing “Miners’ Ballads” with Durham Miners Association Brass Band - Redhills Durham Miners Hall

15 July

Bill Ryder-Jones and The NASUWT Riverside Band performing “Iechyd Da” – Gala Durham

18 July

Durham Brass Festival hosts BBC Radio 4 The VerbFeaturing Simon Armitage and LYR performing Firm As A Rock with Easington Colliery Band - Redhills Durham Miners Hall

19 July         

Brassed On featuring Faithful Johannes, Amateur Ornithologist and Liz Corney  – Gala Durham

19 July

NETOA Wurlitzer and Stanhope Silver Band: Brass and Pipes - New Victoria Centre, Howden-le-Wear

20 July

The Fairey Band present Pictures at an Exhibition  – Gala Durham

20 July

The Fairey Band present Acid Brass  – Gala Durham

Tickets go on general sale via the festival website from 10am on Friday 21 March.