The Clarence Park Bandstand, situated in and listed as an "attraction" of Thornes Park at the foot of "Lowe Hill" in Wakefield , has been a cornerstone of Wakefield's Musical Heritage for MANY years... It was originally the home to brass band concerts and recitals on Sunday afternoons for the local community, and in 1969 Global Village utilised it for the first of many Free Contemporary Music Concerts, establishing the tradition now continued by The Wakefield Music Collective with their series of Clarence Park Annual Free Music Festivals from 1991 thru to present day. Sadly, the Bandstand has been the target of vandalism in recent years, and as such has fallen into a state of disrepair and neglect. At Clarence 2007, The Music Festival undertook the task of cleaning it up and making it presentable for the weekend. An immense task as it turned out, which was documented by Jon Stockill over at Fotopic...

Update - 6th June 2008 - Finally, for the first time in over 20 years, The Music Collective (with funding and support from WMDC Parks and Public Realm) are proud to announce the long awaited return of Brass Bands to The Clarence Park Bandstand!! It's been a long time coming, but we aim to show that the people of Wakefield WANT their park by bringing this old tradition back to life once more... Crofton Silver Band will be taking to the stage at 3pm on Sunday 29th June...

Update - 10th May 2008 - A visit was paid to the bandstand today to have a look at things closeup. The roof looks fantastic, however, it would appear that the recent warm weather has given some the desire to light campfires on the square of concrete that used to form the base for the bandstand steps, using leftover plasterboard from the roof repairs as fuel. The rear doors remain solid and secure, and the reinforcements to the main concertina-doors performed by The Collective last summer have thus far held strong. Wakefield Civic Society have now formally announced their aim to form a "Friends of Thornes Park" group via a recent Press Release - "Anyone interested in helping to establish a Friends group for the park is asked to contact the Society by post at Wakefield Civic Society, PO Box 380, Wakefield, WF1 3WT or by email at parks@wakefieldcivicsociety.org.uk"

Update - 4th May 2008 - Repair work has been undertaken by Wakefield Council thanks to an ongoing relationship with The Wakefield Music Collective and Wakefield Civic Society. The roof has now been overhauled, and a Friends of Clarence Park / Friends of the Bandstand group is now being formed. A joint press release is due to be issued by The Collective, The Council and The Civic Society stating future aims for the building and park as a whole. Recent local election results (Labour's majority drastically reduced to a single seat) may see a dramatic change to the current vision for the future of the park and the bandstand... time will tell whether this change is for the better or for the worse.