David Holland was born in 1948 in Ashton-Under-Lyne, Greater Manchester.

At eleven years old, he began playing the cornet and joined the Tintwistle Band. An eleven mile journey each way could not deter him from attending the twice weekly rehearsals (travelling to the majority of these in all weathers on his pushbike!) The band was very successful on the contesting stage and even beat The Black Dyke Mills Band one Whit Friday.

At the age of sixteen, David joined the Lancashire Constabulary as a police cadet and The Band Of The Lancashire Constabulary, playing Repiano cornet for both Tintwistle Band and The Band Of The Lancashire Constabulary simultaneously for two years.

As a result of being moved 30 miles north at the age of eighteen to become a Police Constable in Clayton-le-Moors, Lancashire, he left Tintwistle Band after finding it difficult to be fully committed to both bands.

It was soon after this that he and The Band Of The Lancashire Constabulary's musical director, Frank Hough, realised that he was beginning to struggle as a cornet player. The decision was therefore made that as there was a vacancy on Eb bass, David would move to that position with immediate effect, a position that he remained on until the band's demise in the early 1990's. The Band Of The Lancashire Constabulary was also a very successful band, and at the height of it's success, under the direction of Richard Evans, were a championship section band that prided itself on being able to compete at the highest standard, with every position filled by an active member of the Lancashire Constabulary Police Force.

As the band's success was coming to an end, David realised that the band in which his daughters played (and his wife was the secretary of) was itself going through some difficulties. Haslingden & Helmshore Brass Band was a fourth section village band that had recently lost many of it's players, aswell as it's musical director. In 1990, with just eight members left (seven of these who are still members to this day) the band was holding auditions for a musical director who was prepared for the hard task of rebuilding an almost extinct brass band. As David had never before conducted a brass band, he was appointed as musical director more for his enthusiasm and commitment to the band than his conducting skills, and it was agreed that as soon as a suitable musical director was found to replace him, he would step down. The band's rehearsal night was moved from Wednesday to Tuesday so that his commitment to the Lancashire Constabulary band would not be affected. As someone who had always encouraged young people to play, David started the Haslingden & Helmshore Trainee Band and also managed to encourage youngsters from local schools to join the band, as well as a couple of old friends. By 1994, and with a full band of inexperienced players, the band took part in it's first contest for four years. Although coming a dissapointing 6th out of nine in the fourth section, the band got a buzz for contesting, something that has propelled them in just a decade from being a non-contesting band to a promotion into the first section at the beginning of this year.

David lives in Haslingden with his wife of 35 years, Andrea. They have two daughters.