MUSICAL sisters Beatrix and Cynthia Channon, pictured right, were among 40 young musicians who formed the Oxford Schools’ Wind Band.

They were preparing to take part in a concert at Oxford School in Glanville Road, East Oxford, in 1969 in aid of Shelter, the charity for the homeless.

The band consisted of 25 girls and 15 boys from Oxford School, Cheney Girls, Milham Ford, Cheney Mixed and Bayswater Schools.

Beatrix was the soloist in Mozart’s Horn Concerto, while another member of the band, Mary Corby, was the soloist in a movement from the Clarinet Sonata by Stanford.

Meanwhile members of Kidlington Silver Band, far right, clinched first prize of £250 and a trophy when they won a national brass band contest.

They outplayed 11 other bands in the Nuneaton Brass Band Festival.

The 25 musicians gave a 20-minute per-formance of four short pieces of music and a technical test piece.

The band’s publicity officer, Mike Parker, said: “It is an excellent result and a great morale booster. It is quite a prestigious event to win.”

The contest sponsors, brewers Mitchell and Butler, were so impressed that they invited the band back to Nuneaton to give a special evening performance.