The French National, Brass at the Guild, British Open Youth Championships, and Butlin's Mineworkers Open National Brass Band Festival are all given full retrospective coverage in this month's BBW.

Later this year, for the first time in history, the European Brass Band Championship will take place on French soil. The venue will be the Auditorium du Nouveau Siècle in the 2014 European Capital of Culture, Lille - home to the 12th French National Brass Band Championship, which took place last month. Antoine Langagne, conductor of the Republican Guard and French Brass Band Committee member, reports from across the Channel on a historic win for the Paris Brass Band, who premiered Oliver Waespi's new work, Hypercube.

The Guild Hall and the Charter Theatre, Preston, were thronging with bands on 24 January - some testing their mettle on the set works for the forthcoming British ‘Areas’ others simply entertaining. James McLeod reports on a great day for conductor Mark Peacock, and the launch of the British Open Youth competition, which showcased some of the finest performances of the whole contest.