Wright and Round moves forward

 

One of the oldest names in brass band publishing, Wright and Round, has announced several organisational changes following the retirement of Managing Director Roger Thompson.

For over 25 years Roger was the driving force behind the publishing house which was founded in 1875, and whose catalogue contains some of the most famous pieces in the history of brass bands at the turn of the nineteenth century, including composers such as William Rimmer, James Ord Hume, Alexander Owen and Edwin Swift. The company publishes the famous red hymn books which continue to ship all over the world. Initially based in Liverpool, Wright and Round now has offices in Gloucester, and Roger Thompson saw the company through the whole era of digitisation, embracing new technologies for music engraving, but also upholding older traditions, such as printing on the famous 'yellowed' paper. An ex-euphonium player with the Sun Life (Stanshawe) Band in Bristol, Roger retires from Wright and Round with the very best wishes and thanks from all its staff.

On a personal note, fellow business partners Ken Sawyer and Brian Last have known each other and Roger for 38 years and have been in business together for 35 of those. Ken commented: “We started a computer typesetting company together from scratch and gradually built it into one of the largest and most respected businesses in that industry. Roger, with his musical background, always had the urge for us to get into the music publishing business and when Wright and Round became available, almost at the same time as the emergence of producing music electronically, that’s where it all began for us. We will miss Roger’s trend-setting ideas and forward speculation as I am sure Wright and Round would not be in its current position without him. We would like to wish you best wishes and happiness Roger throughout your retirement”.

Directors Ken and Brian will continue to oversee the business side of Wright and Round, and Rachel Jones will remain as Systems Administrator, whilst Music Editor Philip Harper will take charge of all musical and engraving matters. Speaking of future plans Philip commented: "We're very proud of Wright and Round's history of publishing brass band music for nearly a century and a half, and will continue to respect the old values, as well as pushing forward into a new era. Central to our plans is the launch of a new Wright and Round website, which will be our 24/7 shop front, giving everyone access to the thousands of titles the company has published over the years. The next few months will see the launch of several new titles, including some of my own, as played by the Cory Band, and from other established composers such as Darrol Barry. We would also like to encourage new and existing writers to submit material for consideration."

Wright and Round has recently moved offices, and the new contact details are as follows:
Wright & Round Ltd
Unit 14 Twigworth Court Business Centre
Tewkesbury Road
Twigworth
Gloucester
GL2 9PG

The phone number and e-mail address will remain the same.

Telephone: 01452 523438
e-mail: sales@wrightandround.com