Music fans are looking forward to BRASS '09 the Durham International Brass Festival next month/ The event will be a two-week celebration of internationally acclaimed brass artists and ensembles.

Blowing its way across County Durham this year’s festival offers everything from traditional brass bands to afro-beat, Balkan brass madness to classical ensembles, folk-brass to contemporary jazz.

At the last count there were over 40 events, many of them free, with at least 40 brass ensembles and 250 top-class artists from Mexico, Iceland, Austria, Germany, Macedonia, Finland, France, Ireland, Canada, Cuba, Switzerland, USA, Nigeria, the Netherlands and the UK