THERE is nothing quite like the sound of wind instruments to lift the spirits, and five of Scotland’s finest young exponents are coming to the Eastgate Theatre on Tuesday, December 1 to prove that.

The multi-award winning musicians of Athenaeum Winds have all studied at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland and have appeared with all Scotland’s major orchestras. As a group, they have established a strong reputation for their outstanding musicianship and their imaginative programming, combining mainstream works with neglected or modern pieces.

This is not their first visit to Peeblesshire, as they gave a memorable concert at Traquair House to mark National Chamber Music Day, 2012. The first half of that concert was given in the idyllic setting of the courtyard, bathed in warm sunshine, but was brought to an abrupt end when a sixth wind (a playful southerly) joined the quintet and left them chasing their music across the grass! The second half was played in the sublime (and mercifully calm) surroundings of the Chapel.

For their return visit, the group has chosen a typically varied programme, from the Classical elegance of Mozart to the jazz-infused Dance Suite by Norman Hallam (himself a former clarinettist with the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra). There’s also a work by a flautist, the highly attractive Wind Quintet by Frenchman Paul Taffanel (a contemporary of Fauré) and (to show the group holds no prejudice against viola players), the virtuosic Kleine Kammermusik by Paul Hindemith, filled with his characteristic deadpan humour. Completing the programme are arrangements of French piano music, the short Novelette by Poulenc and the Suite No.1 by Debussy, which includes the famous ‘Girl with the flaxen hair’ and ‘Cakewalk’.

It is the final Music in Peebles concert of 2015 and promises to set us up nicely for the lead-in to the festive season.

The concert is open to everyone and starts at 7.30pm. Tickets costing £14 for adults (or £7 if accompanying a child under 12) are on sale from the Eastgate Theatre Box Office (01721 725777); admission is free for all school students and for members of Music in Peebles. Full details of the concert, and more about the artists, can be found at www.musicinpeebles.org.uk, together with information about Music in Peebles.