It’s been a busy week on the road for Allegro Optical, Meltham’s musician’s optician.
We have had a very busy and varied start to September. On Tuesday last week, we took Allegro on the road, firstly to The Royal Northern College of Music in Manchester when we attended the Music Mark North West area conference. We took our roadshow to the event to help educate music teachers about the very unique visual needs of musicians and performers and how Allegro Optical can help. We were overwhelmed by the response we received, with teachers and educators from across the region wanting to know more.
Vision and Music
Poor or reduced vision among musicians can lead to poor posture which impacts on performance and in turn on performance confidence. This frequently leads to musicians retiring early. As one musician said recently “Uncertainty with your vision is just as serious as a mechanical failure with your instrument. That moment of indecision increases performance pressure, leads to mistakes and stops you from giving your best”. Decreasing visual acuity can lead to poor posture which increases the risk of the musician going on to develop from musculoskeletal disorders. This is particularly noticeable among over the over 40 age group although we do see younger performers with recently diagnosed degenerative eye conditions who fear for the loss of a career or hobby they love.The British Open
The next port of call was the British Brass Band Open Championships in Symphony Hall Birmingham. Time to meet lots of new faces and catch up with some old ones. We made plenty of new contacts and Abi seemed to enjoy meeting the bandsmen and women.
Steve our MD caught up with some old mates from the brass band world who were very kind in their remarks in relation to his health scare last year. He also got a lovely surprise visit from his old mate Tommy Burns from his army days. Over 36 years ago Tommy was a Clarinetist. He served with Steve in the Regimental Band of the 5th Royal Inniskilling Dragoon Guards. It was lovely for me to meet him and hear the two of them share some memories and reminiscences of their youth.
Congratulations
We send our congratulations to the Cory Band on a well-deserved win. Also to our old friend Vincent Bearpark, Principal Cornet with Valaisia Brass Band.
Congratulations for winning the Stanley Wainwright Memorial Trophy. (His father is a client of ours and a friend and originates from Saddleworth before he moved to Switzerland). Local trombonist and friend of Allegro Optical, Adrian Bird from Marsden. Adrian plays with Leyland Band where he sits in the seat our Steve occupied in the 80’s on Bass Trombone. They came in with a very respectable 6th place. So we are delighted to send them all our congratulations on a job well done.
There are lots of new and exciting things coming in the next few weeks. So watch this space for more about Allegro Optical, “The Musician’s Optician”. 
