A true inspiration to Ceredigion’s young musicians and the backbone of the county’s music services are just two of the comments used to describe the outstanding musician Geraint Evans, who this week announced his retirement from his post as county Music Service Manager.

Geraint has worked for Ceredigion’s music service since the mid-1990s and has served as manager for the last eleven and a half years.

His period in charge of the service has coincided with some very difficult times for music services in general, including the covid pandemic which terminated music tuition for countless instrumentalists and singers throughout the county. But throughout his career, Geraint always remained upbeat and positive.

“In spite of his immense workload, Geraint would always have time to talk to people, give a hand, help them out, and to offer support,” said one of the county’s leading brass music teachers, Aidan Hassan.

“If ever the expression ‘salt of the earth' could be used to describe someone, it would be Geraint.”

In running the service, Geraint's priority was that the music should be fun for all participating children, and he was always looking for new and exciting opportunities for performances.

"On behalf of all my colleagues in the service, I would like to offer our heartfelt thanks for everything that Geraint has done for us, for the service, and for the people and young musicians of Ceredigion,” added Aidan Hassan.