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And the bands played on - for 125 years

Martin Heath
BBC News, Northamptonshire
Contributed by Douglas Goddard A black and white photo of people in a park. There is a bandstand in the distance with a conical roof. Some people are sitting on the grass while others are walking around. There is a large group of people near the bandstand. There are trees in the background.Contributed by Douglas Goddard
People have been enjoying music at the Northampton bandstand since 1900

A celebration will be taking place around a bandstand to mark 125 years of outdoor music at the site.

The event will be conducted by Northampton Town Council at Abington Park on Saturday.

Audiences have been enjoying the sunshine or dodging the rain to listen to music at the site since the last days of Queen Victoria.

Musicians from across the county will be taking part in the celebration.

The English conductor, Thomas Beecham, once said that "brass bands are all very well in their place - outdoors and several miles away".

But people in Northampton have been getting as close as possible to the music in the Abington Park bandstand for well over a century.

The park was opened in 1897 to mark the diamond jubilee of Queen Victoria.

It covers 120 acres (49 hectares), divided by Park Avenue South which runs between the upper and lower park.

It includes a manor house, two lakes and a church.

Martin Heath/BBC The bandstand with green poles and railings and a black roof. There is a band dressed in white shirts and dark trousers playing various brass and percussion instruments. There is a low hedge in front of the bandstand and stone steps leading down from the raised platform to the ground. A number of people are standing in front of the bandstand listening to the music.Martin Heath/BBC
Daventry Brass Band is one of the many that has played on the bandstand in recent years

The seasonal Bands in the Park programme of live performances has offered people a chance to enjoy music on Sundays and Bank Holidays, perhaps with an ice cream from the adjacent shop.

The programme has become more varied in recent years with choirs, singers and rock bands appearing, as well as the traditional brass bands.

Martin Heath/BBC People sitting in a bandstand holding various instruments including trombones, euphoniums, tubas, cornets and trumpets. The musicians are wearing white shirts and dark trousers. A music stand with clothes pegs attached is visible near the camera, along with a xylophone and a glockenspiel. Martin Heath/BBC
Musicians from across the county and beyond have played on the bandstand

Keith Holland-Delamere, from the town council's community services committee, said: "It is incredible to think that these music performances have taken place on the Abington Park bandstand every year for the last 125 years, with the first ever performance in 1900.

"We wanted to mark this significant milestone with a celebration featuring local music and stalls, plus some traditional Maypole dancing, art activities and much more."

Stu Vincent Photography/Northampton Town Council The park with a bandstand in the background, on which musicians are playing. There are women gathered around a blanket in the foreground - two are sitting on folding chairs while five are sitting on the blanket or grass. There is a low hedge around the bandstand and trees behind it.Stu Vincent Photography/Northampton Town Council
An afternoon at the bandstand has become a summer Sunday tradition for many people in Northampton

Local historian Douglas Goddard has put together an archive of heritage photographs and his collection will be on display in the park, as well as on the Northampton Town Council website.

The celebration event, hosted by NLive radio, takes place between 11:00 and 16:00 BST.

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