Musician's love of music to endure through gift

A widower hopes his wife's love for music will be shared by generations to come after donating the instrument she loved to a youth band.

Andrew Keirl has given the glockenspiel owned by his wife Alison to Cornwall Youth Brass Band with the epitaph: "May the music play on".

Alison played piano and violin before being diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis as a teenager. She struggled to continue playing her instruments so Andrew suggested she try the glockenspiel instead.

Andrew said: "Alison retired after 40 years in the NHS last year and we both joined St Breward Silver Band. In a cruel twist of fate, just three weeks later she suffered a stroke and died in April."

Andrew, a retired optometrist from Liskeard in Cornwall, said Alison spent a year in hospital being treated for her arthritis.

He was a brass band conductor at the time and, when Alison struggled to play piano and violin, he suggested she try the glockenspiel, which could be played with sticks.

Alison took to the instrument "like a duck to water" and loved playing it, Andrew said.

When they were married 29 years previously, he gave her a top-of the-range glockenspiel as a wedding present.

After her death, Andrew said he did not want the instrument "stood in a corner gathering dust".

"I wanted it to be used, and I'm sure Alison would as well, to help young people," said Andrew.

He added: "Music is so important for youngsters, banding in particular, for communication, team building, trust.

"I moved around the country over the years and as a bander you find the nearest band suddenly you're in a strange town but you've got 25 new friends.

"It's an absolutely wonderful thing to do and to encourage these youngsters by donating a decent quality instrument for them to use is really what I wanted to do," he said.

Tom Arnold, a Truro Cathedral chorister as well as a percussionist, said: "It's wonderful to have an instrument like that in our band.

"Tuned percussion is very different from all other percussion, it's not like a drum it doesn't have a skin, but it's pretty much just like a piano.

"Learning it [glockenspiel] has been such fun, and not many people can play it.

Keirl has been made an honorary member of the Cornwall Youth Brass Band in recognition of his donation.

Follow BBC Cornwall on X, Facebook and Instagram. Send your story ideas to spotlight@bbc.co.uk.