Spitfires win battle for Britain

Flying the British flag at the International Trombone Festival competitions yesterday were the Spitfire Trombone Quartet from Guildhall coached by Eric Crees who were awarded the winning prize in the annual Quartet Competition. Playing Bruckner'sLocus Iste and Gary Carpenter'sSecret Love Songs, the four students aged 20-22 were successful in competition from quartets from Rotterdam and Budapest in the final held in the Adrian Boult Hall. The judges Don Lucas and Gary Carpenter award the prize following the 9am competition on the first day of the festival. Carpenter said later that the British quartet had:

'given a real performance full of risk taking. They won because they had a feel for the architecture - a sense of the over-arching form'

Spitfires celebrate after winning the $1000 prize ITA Quartet Competition. (l-r Chris Gill, Matt Eckland, Jon Watkins, Richard Watkin Richard Watkin, Jon Watkins and Matt Eckland have recently completed their 3rd and 4th years at the Guildhall School of Music, studying with Eric Crees and Simon Wills. Chris Gill has just finished his 4th year at the Royal Academy of Music, studying with Bob Hughes. British medal hopes continue in competitions today with two of Dudley Bright's students, Andrew Connington and Matt Knight.

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