The Cooperation Band

the cooperation band
Background information
Also known as
  • CWS (Glasgow) Band
  • Co-operative Funeralcare Band
OriginGlasgow, Scotland
GenreBritish brass band
Years active1918 (1918)––present
LabelDoyen
Websitewww.thecooperationband.co.uk

The Cooperation Band (stylised as the cooperation band) is a British brass band based in Glasgow. It has won the Scottish brass band championship a record 36 times, and the National Brass Band Championships of Great Britain twice.

History

The band was formed in 1918 as the Scottish Co-operative Wholesale Society (SCWS) band, originally drawing its players from the SCWS tobacco factories in Glasgow. It continued to receive sponsorship from the Co-operative Group, adopting a number of names relating to the group's business, most recently the Co-operative Funeralcare Band from 2009 until 2019.

As the CWS (Glasgow) Band, they won the National Brass Band Championships of Great Britain in 1990, and repeated this feat in 1996.

In 2018, it was announced that the Co-operative Group would withdraw its sponsorship, and the band's future seemed in doubt. However, a new sponsorship deal was arranged with Scotmid cooperative society, which brought with it a new name of "the cooperation band".

In 2024, the cooperation band appointed Katrina Marzella-Wheeler as their Principal Conductor, the first woman to hold this position in the band's history.

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Co-op faces crisis in the most critical period of 100 year history". 4barsrest. 19 July 2018. Retrieved 29 May 2019.
  2. ↑ "BBC Radio Scotland - Classics Unwrapped, Live in session: Scotland's Championship-winning brass band". BBC. Retrieved 29 May 2019.
  3. ↑ "Champion brass band in crisis after funding pulled". STV. 5 October 2018. Retrieved 29 May 2019.
  4. ↑ "New signings and returns boost cooperation". 4barsrest. 5 March 2019. Retrieved 29 May 2019.
  5. ↑ "Marzella-Wheeler takes principal baton role at cooperation band". 4barsrest. 7 December 2024. Retrieved 25 February 2025.