Chris Wignall is a relative newcomer to the Band, but has very quickly become a keen and key member.
“I think I started learning the clarinet in year 6, so I would have been 10 or 11, and I’m now 30 so… quite a while! I started with the recorder like most people, and I immediately took to it so my parents put me in for clarinet lessons.
“More recently I bought a piano which mostly collects dust. Sometimes I attempt to play it but I’ve never had lessons so I’m pretty rubbish. I can just about play some easy tunes. I think the trumpet is a really cool instrument and I would love to learn it. One day I might have time…
“I met my wife Marie when we were both playing clarinet in the same band, and we joined Winslow together. I remember at my first rehearsal with the Band, one of the pieces we played was a Madness medley. I was sat just in front of the saxophones, which, it could be said, were playing very ‘enthusiastically’! But it obviously didn’t put me off because I am still here. I like how relaxed the band is, especially compared to my previous band which was very formal. Having said that, some of our pieces can still be quite tricky and it’s really lovely when we put in a good performance after several weeks’ practising together.
“For the ‘day job’ I am a Software Engineer at Mercedes F1. At weekends we do a lot of walking in the countryside and I also like playing snooker.”
