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Puffy red cheeks gave way to contented grins for Christchurch's Woolston Brass band after they won the Band of the Year title at the weekend. About 700 people filled Christchurch Town Hall for yesterday's contest, which capped five days of performances around the city. "We've had a week of performances by 30-something bands and several hundred soloists there's about 1500 musicians here," the vice-president of the Brass Bands Association of New Zealand, Evan Sayer, said. Sayer was last night cooling his heels at a hotel along with a team of exhausted trumpeters and trombonists. Among them, Christchurch's Phil Johnston was revelling in the title of top soloist at yesterday's event, for his B-flat bass tuba performance of Czardas, by Vittorio Monti. "They were brilliant performances," Sayer said. "This is really top-notch entertainment, this is really at the top of what brass bands can offer." The 25-minute performances were lung-busting efforts, he said. The winning Woolston band has ranked among the top bands in the country for more than 100 years. The band was led by music director Graham Hickman, who was appointed to the role in 2006. Hickman said they used a lot of different styles to keep the audience entertained. "The band that gets involved with it takes the audience with them," he said. "It's been a hard week for the band but they've worked hard and dug deep." The band was proud of its roots in the suburb of Woolston, having maintained the name since it was set up in 1891. Besides yesterday's success, the 38-strong band also scooped "Own Choice Test" on Saturday night and the marching band competition on Friday. "We beat a couple of Aussie bands in the process, which was rather nice," Hickman said. "I had to put a bit of a shout on the bar for the boys." Woolston has won the Band of the Year title five times since the competition was started to replace the Quickstep and Marching Display in 1996. Woolston Brass beat competition from Wellington's Pelorus Trust band and the Canterbury Brass band, which tied for second. The performances were judged on musical performance and entertainment value. Hickman said the band would have a week off before preparing for a fundraising ball on August 23. The musicians hope to raise enough money go to the Australasian brass band championships on Australia's Gold Coast in October. []  Woolston Brass Formed in 1891 Woolston Brass of Christchurch is one of New Zealand's premier brass bands. In a tradition inherited from 19th century North of England, Woolston Brass has been at the forefront of competition among brass bands since contests began. Originally, "The Woolston Band" took its name from the Christchurch suburb that has always been its home. An integral part of the musical life of Christchurch, the band gained the sponsorship of Skellerup Industries Limited in 1967 and became known as The Skellerup Woolston Band. The band has been self-funding since the early eighties. With a playing strength of nearly forty musicians the Band is currently under the baton of its newly appointed Music Director Graham Hickman. Graham follows a long line of distinguished conductors such as R.J.(Dick) Estall, Mervyn Waters, Ken Smith and the recently retired David Gallaher, under whose ten-year tenure the band achieved a remarkable contesting record including a hat-trick of National Championship wins (2000, 2001, 2002). The objectives of the band include the promotion of the art of music making and the training of learners through its Junior Band. An innovative leader, Woolston Brass has always been at the cutting edge of an expanding brass band repertoire. The band also strives to present its culturally unique music to the wider public whenever possible. Woolston Brass has a record of championship successes unsurpassed among New Zealand brass bands. Twenty-one times Champion Band of New Zealand since 1971, the band also won the Edinburgh Festival Contest in 1975, came fifth in the British Open Championship of that year and won the Australian Championship in 1980. Woolston Brass currently holds the New Zealand Championship and the prestigious Shell NZ Band of the Year title. One of the few New Zealand bands to tour overseas, Woolston Brass is widely travelled and its travelogue records visits to Australia, Singapore, Hong Kong and Japan. In 2000 the band toured Great Britain and competed in the British Open Brass Band Contest. Finishing twelfth, the band proved itself to be amongst the world's top brass bands. With a high family involvement, members range in age from fourteen to sixty and are drawn from all walks of life - business and trades-people, builders, teachers, students, soldiers and senior citizens. Drawn together by the common bond of a love of music and a strong sense of loyalty, these amateur musicians achieve professional standards in their pursuit of excellence. Go to page Journal thingee