23/05/2026
It is with an enormous amount of sadness that I write to say that our cornet player Dave Wilde passed away yesterday following a battle with cancer. Dave has been a stalwart of the band (and the wider, local banding scene) for almost 30 years. He was a part of the group that was set-up alongside Great Sankey High School in 1997 and held a phenomenal record of missing only 1 or 2 rehearsals and zero performances between 1997 and about 2020.
Dave was undoubtedly one of the biggest characters in the bands history, and made us laugh and cry in equal measure over nearly 30 years. Whether it was his mishaps such as getting locked in a toilet cubicle forcing him to miss the entire second half of a concert, him always being the first person to greet new female member of the band, him voicing his displeasure (became a bit of a joke and tradition in the end) at every concert programme I ever put together 🤣, or him always wanting to make sure we had secured the best time for an outside performance to ensure we had the best chance of a big audience……Dave was truly a one-off and it’s not too much to call him a legend.
Despite the jokes, the laughs, the disagreements and everything else, it takes a very special person to be at the heart of a group like this for so long, and to be held in such high regard by his peers in the way that Dave always was.
For me personally, I first sat down with the band, aged 14, very shy and not sure what to make of it all. Next to me, was this man who after a few pieces turned to me and said ‘wow, you’re good. You can play the first parts’. For the next 15 years, I played every concert alongside Dave and he gave me so much encouragement every time. When I took over at the front in 2012, Dave was one of the people I knew I could always rely on….and he has been that way ever since.
Truly a remarkable man and musician, Dave will be missed so much and our band will never quite be the same place without him. For now, our thoughts and prayers turn to Dave’s family at this difficult time and we wish for them peace and strength as they navigate the coming days, weeks and months.
And one more thing…..Dave, I can promise that we will play Oliver and Joseph at least once in the next 12-months 😀❤️.
So much love from myself and everyone at Warrington Concert Band.
Ben 🎶🎺
