Frank Wright was a renown resident of Smeaton. He lived at Laura Villa, and attended Smeaton State School. His father William was a gold miner and his mother was Sarah Wright. Their family won many singing and instrumental awards. Frank was tutored by Percy Code and became the Australian Open Cornet Champion by the age of eighteen. A year later, Frank conducted the City of Ballarat Band, and later the Ballarat Soldiers’ Memorial Band. He formed the Frank Wright Frisco Band and Frank Wright and his Coliseum Orchestra. These bands won many South Street awards, and Frank as conductor won many awards in the Australian Band Championship contest. In 1933 Frank Wright sailed to England to conduct the famous St Hilda’s Band and was later appointed Musical Director of the London County Council, where he organized many amazing concerts in parks, in and around the London district. He was made Professor of Brass and Military Band Scoring and conducted at the Guildhall of Music and Drama. Frank was often invited to adjudicate Brass Band Championships around Europe, in Australia, including South Street and in New Zealand. The Frank Wright Medal at the Royal South Street competition is awarded to an individual recognized as making an outstanding contribution to brass music in Australia. St Joseph's home was later known as Nazareth House.Black and white photograph of a group of boys dressed in a band uniform all carrying brass instruments. The conductor is seated centre front with two drums, one on top of the other placed in front of him. The group is arranged in front of shrubbery and a statue of Mary. The conductor is Frank Wright and the grounds are the boys orphanage, St Joseph's Home - now Blythewood GrangeWritten in ink on front - '1924'frank wright, brass band, catholic, mary statue, orphanage, st joseph's home, sebastopol, st joseph's orphanage band

St Joseph's was a Catholic Orphanage in Sebastopol, Victoria. Rectangular photo of group of boys in the St Joseph's Choir with Frank Wright and a Priest sitting in front rowbrass band, catholic, priest, orphanage, choir, frank wright, sebastopol, st joseph's orphanage choir, st joseph's orphanage

Frank Wright was a renown resident of Smeaton, where he was born on 2 August 1901. He lived at Laura Villa, and attended Smeaton State School. His father William was a gold miner and his mother's name was Sarah. Their family won many singing and instrumental awards. Frank was tutored by Percy Code and was awarded a gold medal for the highest marks in the ALCM examinations in the British Colonies at the age of seventeen years. He became the Australian Open Cornet Champion by the age of eighteen. A year later, Frank conducted the City of Ballarat Band, and later the Ballarat Soldiers’ Memorial Band. He formed the Frank Wright Frisco Band and Frank Wright and his Coliseum Orchestra. These bands won many South Street awards, and Frank as conductor won many awards in the Australian Band Championship contest. In 1933 Frank Wright sailed to England to conduct the famous St Hilda’s Band and was later appointed Musical Director of the London County Council, where he organized many amazing concerts in parks, in and around the London district. He was made Professor of Brass and Military Band Scoring and conducted at the Guildhall of Music and Drama. Frank was often invited to adjudicate Brass Band Championships around Europe, in Australia, including South Street and in New Zealand. The Frank Wright Medal at the Royal South Street competition is awarded to an individual recognized as making an outstanding contribution to brass music in Australia.A small photograph of a group of young boys with an array of band instrumentsfrank wright, st joseph's sebastopol, orphanage, sebastopol