Boscombe Band in Scandinavia 2011

Our last day in Norway consisted of a morning meeting at the Oslo Temple corps & the last chance for sightseeing before our evening departure back to the United Kingdom. With it being Fathers Day back at home, a number of the Dads in our Band had received cards & presents to open. This must have been tough for some, having been away from families & loved ones for over a week particularly on a day like today. The time & sacrifices made by those closest to us while serving with our Band is never taken for granted.

The morning worship saw the hall full to bursting with many soldiers, visitors, and importantly for the future of the Army, a large number of young people. It is obvious that the Army is vibrant, alive & well in Oslo. Excellent unprompted testimonies from Brian, Tony Christopher (understood by Norwegians without the aid of the translator?!), Niall & Howard inspired our Norwegian hosts & band alike.

We had been very excited looking forward to hearing the world famous Oslo Gospel Choir as noted in our tour itinerary! It turned out that we would actually be listening to the Oslo Temple Gospel Choir, but they did not disappoint in their two songs. The recently formed group had feet tapping and hands clapping during their excellent contributions, dispelling any potential disappointments at the error in our programme!

The Band contributions included Agape, Prayer of Thanksgiving & My All is on the Altar which followed the message from Gilbert Ellis. During this particular address, the Band had a translator to ensure we didn’t fall asleep due to our lack of Norwegian vocabulary!  He did a fantastic job converting Gilbert’s Norwegian to help us get a grasp of the sermon. However, at one point due to Gilbert’s slight English accent to his Norwegian, our translator just turned to us, shrugged and said, “I have no idea what he just said!” This led to much hilarity within the Band of course!

After words of thanks, and the congregational singing of Lord I Make a Full Surrender, the final benediction was an emotional reading of I’ll Walk With God, with the large broad final chord ending our playing in Scandinavia in style. The van was packed and a final dinner provided by our hosts, before David Wilkinson & Wayne Nock departed in the van for their lengthy European road trip via Eurotunnel home to England. (As I type this blog on Monday evening they are stuck in Germany due to accidents blocking their route. Safe trip home lads, and hopefully you will arrive with our instruments before Thursday; otherwise our practice for Christchurch Priory might involve a lot of singing and whistling!)

With a late evening flight booked back to London, we had the afternoon free and were treated with a visit to the Holmenkollen ski jump which towers over one of the hills overlooking Oslo.  Coffee and cakes were provided at an attractive old ski chalet café further up the mountain offering stunning views over the city & harbour as the clouds & mist cleared into a beautiful sunny afternoon. As our coach took us back down the mountain, we stopped at a fantastic viewing point overlooking lakes and wooded mountains to take final band pictures.  The front and back row Cornets & Horns all took the chance for sectional photos for posterity! However, poor old Trevor Smith looked lonely & was unable to have a Trombone sectional picture due to his two colleagues being on the road already!

As we departed Oslo towards the airport to catch BA769 flight to London Heathrow, we also said goodbye to people who have assisted in making this tour so memorable. We have been looked after fantastically by each corps and country we have visited. Particular thanks though were given to Major Jan Harald Hagen (Norwegian Territorial Music Secretary), who accompanied us and assisted with translating Howard’s music introductions. A particular highlight being the confusion of Men of Harlech as Men of Garlic!  Our Coach Driver Bo (previously an S.A. Bandmaster) also received the grateful thanks of our Band, having driven for many hours and miles to ensure we kept to our at times punishing schedule. He gave compliments to our Band for our fine playing, but also stated that he had never travelled with a group that had such a good spirit off the concert platform.

The flight home was pleasant, watching the sun set over the North Sea as we approached Heathrow, flying directly over the new Olympic Stadium, London Eye, Big Ben & Buckingham Palace which ended the tour fantastically.

We hope that Boscombe Band have made our Corps family & the Salvation Army proud with what we have strived to achieve during our time abroad. Our Corps mission statement which was included on the front cover of our tour brochure is To Know Christ-To Live Christ-To Share Christ. I hope that throughout our visit to Scandinavia we have managed to stay true to this sentiment. I believe we have aimed to bring this mission statement the full circle, as Salvation Army bandsmen knowing Christ and people seeing this in our lives while sharing  in the concert hall or streets we can bring more people to know him.

The morning broke with better weather in Drammen than the previous day, the hills surrounding the valley finally visible. The town looked so much more picturesque without the grey clouds, mist and persistent rain!  Sadly there wasn’t time to walk down by the river as the bus departed for the Norwegian capital Oslo.

Our final coach journey of note was a nice hour & a half run into the City, where we were greeted at Oslo Temple corps by the Bandmaster (Yngve Slettholm). The large & spacious main hall sits underneath the Territorial Headquarters building with an impressive entrance, and a great use of the rooms and space available to them. The Oslo Temple Band even has their own practice room down in the basement, with old pictures/concert posters and a lift up to the platform to ease the workload for Percussion & Basses!

After welcoming us with coffee and chocolates, the Band had the rare luxury of an hour’s free time to wander & explore the streets of Oslo. Visits were made to see the King of Norway’s palace, taking in the sights and sounds of downtown, and also climbing the roof of the modern opera house in the harbour.

We were lucky to have the opportunity to march through the city during the middle of the afternoon, holding an open air outside the Oslo cathedral. The Saturday shoppers along the pavements, were very intrigued as to who the red tunic wearing brass band marching behind the Union Jack were affiliated to.  Our ministry was held in a perfect position outside the cathedral, opposite a busy market square with several road crossings which ensured large crowds throughout the 20 minute outreach. The chance to march and perform in the City, Towns & Villages has been a particular highlight of our visit to Scandinavia. Taking our message to the people outside the safety of the Salvation Army hall, and the impact this has for the corps and community should never be underestimated.

The end of the march coming past the Parliament buildings saw an unintentional debut solo from a member of the Cornet section after the bass drum double tap! The embarrassed player had to suffer the laughter and ridicule of his colleagues for the final silent minutes marching back to the hall. Unfortunately, the aforementioned soloist has bribed the editor of this blog with a vast amount of Norwegian Kroner, and also in the style of Ryan Giggs, taken out a super injunction to protect his identity!!

Our final concert of the tour featured the by now familiar repertoire (it will be good to play some different music soon!), with a smart rendition of Rosehill impressing the knowledgeable audience. Our three soloists (John, Barney & Craig) had a final chance to demonstrate their technique, sound and soloist skills, before Quintessence ended the half with aplomb.

The lively Chassidic Dance was used to signal the commencement of the second half, followed by the music of Dorothy Gates in All Glorious. Another rendition of our specially commissioned 125^th anniversary piece from the pen of our Bandmaster, Joy through the Ages was received very well. This music is based around the words of the song I Stand Amazed In the Presence of Jesus the Nazarene & was written with thanks to all those who have served Boscombe Band during it’s existence. Within this piece Starksy hit the heights with yet another top D & Trevor Smith (Trombone) stylishly negotiated the jazz solo section of this celebratory music. A final Scandinavian performance of Christ Hymn brought a brilliant end to the evening. Stephen Main delighted the listeners with his Soprano Cornet playing throughout this final item of our performance.

Oslo Temple Corps have been fantastic hosts so far, and we already look forward to their band’s return visit for our Easter convention in 2013! One more sleep in Scandinavia as tomorrow we hold a final meeting in Oslo before departing for home and loved ones .

Boscombe Band continued their journey south towards our final destination of Oslo, arriving in the city of Drammen in terrible weather. Constant rain fell throughout the day (the weather must be preparing for the start of Wimbledon back home next week!) and the cancellation of our planned march & open air ensued.

This allowed all of us to finally stop for a few hours, kick back at the Army hall with biscuits and chocolates, or wander around by the river if brave enough to suffer the cats and dogs falling from the sky. The city itself is celebrating its 200^th birthday this weekend with a massive parade featuring the local corps and their social outreach team. We wish them all the best for their representation of the Salvation Army in this area.

After the relaxing afternoon we were treated to several Pizzas, while Garry continued his role as Quizmaster to assist in passing the time before our concert. Our Bandmaster also had to make an emergency visit to the Shoe Repair shop due to his toecaps starting to fall to pieces. We have concluded that this is due to his uncontrollable desire to dance during pieces like Chassidic Dance, Teach me to Dance & Dance before the Lord. This reminded us of a particular concert back home where he attempted to impress an audience with his interpretation of the Riverdance!! Sorry Howard for bringing that memory back .

We arrived at the concert venue, a modern building called Filadelfia, which reminded us of an Army hall rather than the various types of churches we’ve been lucky to visit this past seven days. Maybe the weather had something to do with it, but the unloading & loading of the van has never been as efficient as this evening! A very one sided, but fun competition has been raging all week between the Timp 1 team of Mark Forsyth & Kevin Whittingham, and the Timp 2 team consisting of Niall Marshallsay & Adrian Whittingham. Of course the Timp 1 has always been removed or loaded first, apart from one rare slip up in Lillehammer! Tonight saw all four bandsmen leaving the platform with much haste to pack instruments away, running back to the stage to carry the percussion to the van. We were so quick that the two timps sat out in the rain for 10 minutes before the van even arrived to load . The aim for the last concert tomorrow night is to take the timps from the platform during the benediction to break our record!

Despite the apparent monsoon raging outside, a healthy sized audience filled the auditorium. This allowed our CD sales team headed by the esteemed Tom Hinchliffe to work their magic sales pitch. He is like Boscombe’s own version of Auntie Wainwright not letting people leave without buying a CD (or multiple discs)! A listener during our tour bought seven CD in one transaction, so hats off to Tom and his team for the sterling work they have put in this past week.

The Band were at the top of their game again with only slight changes to the programme. William Hime’s To the Chief Musician rounded out the opening half, which had included Barney playing His Eye is on the Sparrow with some stylish cheeky note bending. Starsky was also on class form in Bravura & the additional percussionists in the congregational song Never Fades the Name of Jesus got up to mischief adding unwritten chimes, cymbal rolls & vibra slap interludes! The small band excelled in Lightwalk, with a smooth cheeky Flugel solo from Kev and some jazzy Cornet playing from George Lawrence.

The first half had included keeping Eyes on the Sparrow, but the second half saw Band & Audience alike keeping their eyes on the Budgie!! The poor bird found itself inside the concert hall foyer (Tom tried to sell it a CD!), and despite attempts to remove it during the interval it reappeared during All Glorious. Flying from lighting rig, to members of the audience during the playing of Ascalon it finally landed plumb on the trombone slide of Wayne Nock! He is used to getting the bird (!) in his role as a Police Officer but it drew much hilarity that this particular bird had chosen his slide as its choice of perch! Maybe the Band had encouraged its appearance with our Trill(s)?! It was left to Howard with his history of budgie smuggling, to remove the bird safely from the dangerous position of being near to hearing Wayne play his Trombone!! I guess in 125 years of banding there have many things witnessed by Boscombe bandsmen, but this low flying visit must be a first.

It was another successful concert on all fronts as we now move onto the capital Oslo. We hope we are doing the Army, SA Banding, God & our Corps proud with what we are attempting to achieve whilst in Scandinavia.

After another night’s relaxation with billets, or in the case of four lucky Bandsmen, a top floor hotel apartment with hot tub & sauna (such a tough job being the blog editor!!), our coach departed for Lillehammer. The lengthy journey south was hampered by road blockages due to the recent flooding in the region, but the scenery witnessed from the coach was absolutely breathtaking. Just when you thought that Norway couldn’t possibly be more scenic & beautiful, the trip through the snow capped mountain ranges was awe inspiring. Towering rock faces, waterfalls through the wooded mountains, and we also half expected Julie Andrews to appear on the hills singing, “the hills are alive..etc!”

Malcolm led the daily devotions based around the Quiet Heart, which allowed a rare opportunity to sit in peace and gather our thoughts on everything that has taken place. We still think daily of those who we miss back at home & the sacrifices they have made allowing us as a group to undertake this tour. The four members of our Band who couldn’t join us (in no specific order), Karen, Tommy, Vic & Ian are remembered daily, and we wish that you were here to share in all the fun & fellowship.

The tour bus rolled into Lillehammer mid afternoon, with many of us slightly jaded after the longer than expected road trip. There was not much chance to adjust to our new location, as the Band marched through the narrow main shopping street to hold an open air witness. Eric Frampton had recovered sufficiently to resume flag carrying duties, so no excuse for Steve not to march and save his poor little embouchure! The chance to outreach into the communities we visit has been one of the highlights of this visit. Many locals gather around us (drawn in by the purple polo shirt wearing brass players!), and stay to listen to the varied marches, hymn tunes or worship song arrangements played. This has led to people not linked to the Army, attending our evening concerts, and obviously achieving our aim of bringing new people into contact with the Christian message.

The open air was held within the confines of a local market, and the band was positioned in front of the Best of British stall! The Trombones had delusions of grandeur with a sectional picture with the sign behind them! All the success of I Will Follow Him must be going to their heads possibly?!

Our evening concert was held within the confines of the Olympic park, with Lillehammer having hosted the winter games back in 1994. The Nordre Al Kirke which hosted us had been built especially for the athletes who attended that particular Olympiad. The acoustic was very live and helpful, as the by now familiar programme impressed our large congregation who kindly received us with the fourth standing ovation in a row at its conclusion. Local brass band aficionados were complimentary of the great sound, and were kind enough to say that we were “the finest Salvation Army section to have visited this region in recent years!”

The whole band stayed together again at the Birkebeineren Hotel at the foot of the Olympic ski jump. The ski chalet buildings within the wooded hills were a welcome respite after a lengthy day travelling, playing and witnessing. Certain younger members took the chance to explore the facilities, either playing football or walking up the mountain to the Ski Jump arena.  Seeing who could climb the ridiculously high stair case to the top of the jump where the brave/stupid jumpers launch themselves down the side of a hill!!

The Florida Tour had Clearwater in 1994, the USA/Canada tour had Minneapolis in 1998, and now this tour has a concert to match those epic performances! The 2011 Boscombe Band excelled themselves with a barnstorming concert in Lademoen Church, Trondheim last night. From the opening notes of Rosehill to the final chord of Christ Hymn the Band were on top form. Soloists excelled, Howard directed with expertise and fluency, and the overall playing was on a higher level than achieved since arriving in Scandinavia.

The day however had not started terribly well back at the Stowartz mine, with our Colour Sergeant Eric Frampton taking a nasty fall in the Shower. An Ambulance had to be called and Eric was airlifted with concussion to Trondheim to be checked over. Happily, by the time we arrived for dinner later in the day he was able to rejoin us. Back to good health, if with a little bruising. We will take good care of him the remaining days of our visit.

Before the Band left the mines we had a group picture in front of the old buildings. The picture was reminiscent of old Yorkshire Mining band photos of the past. In our purple travel gear we now resembled the Ribena Colliery Band  !! Thankfully the journey today at only 3 hours was a breeze, and despite the wet weather, the scenery of mountains & rivers winding their way through Northern Norway was a chance for camera’s to be used to breaking point. Round every turn appeared another awe inspiring view and photo opportunity! Luckily with modern technology, pictures can be checked and uploaded onto the internet in seconds; otherwise certain members of the Band would have paid for thousands of pounds in developing by now!

After arrival at the Trondheim corps in the shadow of the fantastic city cathedral, we were refreshed with a light meal before marching into the town centre to hold an open air. With our flag carrier out of action, Steve Main (apparently in need of resting his poor lip?!?!) stepped into the breach. He did a good job on the way through the city, avoiding catching the 125 year old flag on any low hanging tree or electric cables! But at the Open Air he left the flag propped against a bench to take some photos only for it to crash to the floor with a gust of wind …….lest to say we were all glad to see Eric return later to take responsible care of our flag!

The afternoon consisted of an interesting visit to the Ringve historical music museum. We were led around various rooms and shown ancient instruments demonstrated by local music students. One of the artefacts we discovered included an old S, P & S Bandmaster Cornet made in St. Albans for the Salvation Army! The age of the instrument some noted, matching that of our esteemed Second Cornet Section!!

The Furulund (Adult Rehabilitation Centre), treated the Band to Lasagne for dinner as we made our way to the church in plenty of time to sound check. The whole day had a more relaxed feel to it without such a long journey or rush to each venue. With a healthy audience in attendance, the Band launched into the evening with aplomb.

Excellent renditions of To the Chief Musician & Ellacombe Chronicles sandwiched the two featured soloists. Barney with another class performance of His Eye is on the Sparrow, and Starsky on sparkling form in Bravura, displaying dazzling technique and panache. A stylish reading of Barrie Gott’s Lightwalk launched the second half in style with Malc (Horn), Kev (Flugel), Colin (Baritone), Brian (Bass), Matt (Percussion), Mark & George (Cornet) all featured and encouraging the audience back to their seats.  All evening the sound and style from the Band matched the requirements and direction of the Bandmaster, with sweet quiet playing in both Ascalon & Coming Home. The final chord of Christ Hymn resounding around the wooden arched roof will live long in the memory, and our audience left with smiles on their faces and hopefully a memory and Christian message in their hearts.

A reasonably early start saw the Band meet at Askim corps in grey, cloudy misty conditions, with driving drizzly rain for our long trek up North to Roros. Probably a good day to be inside our coach for the 8 hour marathon trip!! Goodbyes were said to excellent & friendly hosts as our transport pulled away, and the chance was taken by some to catch up on much needed sleep.

The journey took us higher into the mountains, and the scenery with mist rolling over hilltops & enshrouding the gorges was eerie and very reminiscent of The Lord of the Rings. Watches were kept for any lurking forest Trolls or angry Vikings that might disrupt our otherwise peaceful passage! Garry held a couple of quizzes to pass the time, and we managed to work our way through nearly the complete series one Fawlty Towers box set. The German episode never fails to make everybody laugh :) !

 Lunchtime gave us all three quarters of an hour to stretch our legs, and spend extortionate amounts of Norwegian Kroner for a basic Roll & Drink. Speaking of drinks, it must be noted on this Blog that our previous Divisional Commander was caught attempting to purchase a suspect liquid refreshment of the Danish export variety….or maybe he was stitched up by members of the front row Cornets!? (Photographic evidence to follow!)

The area surrounding our destination of Roros has been suffering with terrible flooding over recent weeks, leading to road closures and much disruption. However, the welcome at the corps hall was less stormy with a lovely meat & two veg soup, and a local dressed in national costume entertaining us and providing history and song regarding the region we have arrived into. The town itself has obtained Unesco World Heritage status, but can also suffer winter temperatures of minus 30-40 degrees!

With slightly more time before the evening concert, the weary, but well fed group made our way to the local church to sound check. This was a beautiful historic wooden church built back in 1780 and recently refurbished back to its original state, complete with Royal Box and tiers above the organ and numerous balconies.

There was a small but select crowd that joined us in the Church for our concert, with several changes to the running order. Albert Jakeway’s classic march Rosehill was used as the opener this evening, with the featured soloists Craig Snell (Glory to His Name) & Barney Lawrence (Demelza) getting to play their alternative numbers from the repertoire. Our Bass section were on top form (great Bb pedal notes!) again during another debut item entitled Eg Veit I Himmerik Ei Borg (Castle in the Sky). The end of the first half saw Quintessence replaced by The Ellacombe Chronicles (Lovingly nicknamed by our Band as The Chronices of Narnia!). This technically demanding piece is exciting but difficult, with Garry Lawrence (Flugel) & Colin Lowe (Baritone) excelling in their solo passages.

Lightwalk again opened the second half of the evening, before moving through the now familiar music & script read by Gilbert Ellis. It always amuses the Band to hear fluent Norwegian interspersed with English titles and composers! After a reasonably decent concert we were lucky enough to receive our second standing ovation in a row.

 The Band was then whisked away up into the hills above Roros to stay together at the Copper Ore mine of Storwartz! The area is very desolate with old wooden mining buildings, lakes, and rolling tundra landscape and snow capped mountains in the distance. The scenery reminded some of Doctor Who, The Hills Have Eyes, or James Bond film sets & our accommodation block of four bed dormitories was reminiscent of Music Camps of the past!! Some of the behaviour was also of the Music School variety too! After supper some took the advantage to venture into the mines and hillside, getting caught in muddy bogs and jumping over streams to get back to sleep. Sadly, no Reindeer or wildlife was located, but you can be sure that with 30 plus tired Bandsmen there will be several Walrus sleeping tonight!!

Three days into our Scandinavian tour and another border has been crossed with Boscombe Band arriving for the first time into Norway. The journey today took us further north into more hilly & forest territory with some incredible views over gorges with the River dancing and flowing underneath!! Wayne Nock enlightened the journey by letting slip that he hadn’t realised that Gothenburg was in Sweden Worrying slightly that he was part of the organising comittee for the tour and is one of the drivers of the instrument van!??!!

Lunchtime saw us arrive in the picturesque town of Halden in the shadow of the Fredriksten Fortress which has seen many a battle between Sweden & Norway in the past. The only battle now seemed to be who could find the best place to moor their exclusive boats in the harbour! With the sun out for the third day running (glad to be away from the rain at home!!), we took a rare chance to spend half hour soaking up the weather with a Hot Chocolate or Coffee. Once refreshed the Ribena Staff Band (yes..we were in the Travel Polo shirts again!!) formed up to partake in a short 20 minute open air service with a crowd gathering around us on the quayside. It was a little windy but pleasant as we played a few marches (Rosehill & Cairo Red Shield) along with some modern worship tunes. A highlight playing Rosehill was Matt Worthington’s improvised cymbal crash on the hi-hat… 

Before we travelled to the local corps building for a delicious dinner, the Band had a photo around the harbour front with Ray Jones lying in front of the Band like an old black and white football team picture! It was funny to think that when Boscombe Band make it to the 150th or 200th anniversary that this picture may feature in the history of that future band!

We arrived in Askim (pronounced Ashim not Ask im like a Northerner!) mid afternoon to a classic old wooden army hall for coffee and incredible cake. The Band have been treated to some great food & hospitality and Norway it seems will not be an exception! The concert itself was held in a local church a couple of minutes further up the hill from the corps. The wooden church was a tight squeeze for space with the Cornets splitting into three rows but the venue was full to bursting by the commencement of the evening concert. As we stood outside for our pre-match…sorry pre-concert team talk, the bells of the church rang out celebrating the Pentecost national holiday adding an unusual but welcome prelude to our evening.

The concert featured the same programme as Copenhagen on Saturday, with perhaps the best playing of the night occuring during the rendition of All to Jesus. It was special as Eiliv Herikstad, the composer & Askim bandmaster, was in attendance and led the Band in a laid back, almost sexy Glenn Miller style rendition of the Swing number (not Count Baisie Malc !) The Deputy Diva’s half time entertainment band also got a chance to run out Lightwalk for the first time to commence the second half of the concert. Our Bass section (Ross, Brian, John & Ian) were sounding particularly awesome tonight with sonorous sounds adding weight and a great platform for the rest of the Band! It’s also good to have Niall Marshallsay as fifth man down on the front row too for this tour and hopefully longer?

After finishing the concert with Christ Hymn, the Band were given a standing ovation from the audience before launching into two encores. Firstly, the crowd pleasing but cheesy item that is I will Follow Him (good work from the Trom section, Garry and dancing band!). Music lovers also received an encore with Bred Dina Vida Vingar which is fast becoming a band & crowd favourite featuring John Starkes & the Euph/Bari section.

With an 8 hour coach trip tomorrow…yes that’s right 8 hours (?!?!), we hurriedly packed the van ready for an early departure from Askim and left for our billets. Thanks for the feedback on the blog… We will see if any naughty gossip can be added in the next 6 days, and maybe an interview with the Bandmaster to fill up time on our trek to Roros.

It’s Farvell from me for now…

The majority of Sunday afternoon was spent aboard our coach travelling up the Swedish coast, after leaving Denmark via the spectacular Oresund bridge over the water from Copenhagen into Malmo. Most people spent the time with iPods plugged in watching movies, listening to music, playing Football Manager (George Lawrence dreaming of taking Saints to the Premiership!!) and catching up on much needed sleep.  The scenery outside the coach was rolling farmland & rivers reminiscent of the American Mid-West, with only the adverts in Swedish and the blue & yellow flags giving a clue to your real location.

Having had the chance to relax for a few hours on the coach, the arrival into Gothenburg commenced the mad rush routine of this tour of unloading Van & Coach, setting up the platform, eating dinner and rushing onto the platform for the evening concert! It was nice to return to a corps where the Singing Company had visited back in 1992 & for the Band itself to return to Sweden twenty one years after last being heard in this area of the world.

The concert was held in the Army hall with a large and youthful audience welcoming the Band to the platform and into another cracking rendition of Victors Acclaimed. The programme featured the same music as the previous evening with only the Soloists altering on this occasion. Barney Lawrence left the audience in awe after a brilliant & tender Tenor Horn solo entitled His Eye is on the Sparrow. It was then the concert moved from the sublime to the….umm….Trombones!! Trevor, Wayne & David wooed the audience with their version of I Will Follow Him which left the audience cheering at the end with excitement. There really is no accounting for taste even in Sweden it seems!

The larger repertoire such as To the Chief Musician, Quintessence & Christ Hymn were all played and received well by our Swedish hosts. Former Bandmaster Kenneth Downie’s arrangement of Coming Home based on the words Softly & Tenderly Jesus is calling was another highlight leaving our audience in quiet contemplation. Overall it was another solid performance by the Band & the CD sales team were kept extremely busy both in the interval & conclusion of the evening’s events. Hopefully the message behind our playing and reason for being in Gothenburg shone through during this brief stop in our second country.

One of the frustrating aspects of being on Tour is that you never really get the time or opportunity to see the places you visit. However, myself, Mark, Barney, Wayne, Smain & Malc stayed at the Army Hall in the building opposite the corps, where we had been fed earlier. This was a great chance to unwind with games of Table Tennis, Street Hockey and then a walk into the city taking in the sights and buildings. Wayne’s appetite and my need for Wifi to upload the latest blog lead us to the Golden Arches of McDonalds. Unfortunately shut just a few minutes before we sat around like homeless people in the entrance taking benefit of the Wifi to upload blogs, call home to loved ones and update Facebook!

A fter a reasonable nights sleep (The Walrus didn’t snore so much ), we were up early for breakfast with the rest of the Band arriving around 7.30am to load and depart for the Frediksten Fortress & Askim this evening. It’s been a very short stop in Sweden but an enjoyable and fun one.   

And so to Norway…..!

After breakfast at our billets  (which consisted of cold meats, Cheese, Bagels, Orange Juice & Tea), we arrived fresh and slightly less travel weary to the Army hall for morning worship. Before the meeting the Band had the honour of walking a short way to Vesterbro’s Torv for a march of witness. The Copenhagen Bandmaster Jens Schou Hansen led the Band in the march Hadleigh Camp with the final chord ringing around the fantastic acoustic of the tall buildings in the City Square.

Boscombe Band on the march is something I’ve grown up with since being a little Junior Soldier with memories of Geoff Otter leading the Band back from Sea Road to the strains of the Redcliffe or Wellingtonian march. The opportunity for S.A. Bands to march these days is few and far between, so it made the hairs on the back of the neck stand up marching through the Danish capital today! I’m especially lucky in the Band formation to stand in front of David Wilkinson and his awesome Bass Trombone sound . Upon arriving back at the Temple we were applauded warmly by the soldiers and bystanders which was an unexpected response and very moving.

The morning worship was lead by the Band (with Gilbert Ellis preaching) and was preceded by a tidy rendition of Agape by Dorothy Gates. The meeting was split into various sections entitled A Time To Praise, A Time to Think, A Time to Reflect & A Time to Conclude. There was the opportunity for bandsmen to give testimonies on what the Spirit is doing in their lives, and a number of spontaneous talks were given by Wayne Nock, David Phillips, Brian Wright & Stephen Main. It’s always interesting and challenging to hear the thoughts of fellow Bandsmen. For anybody who sits near Smain in practice to hear him admit to being grumpier the older he gets would agree wholeheartedly!!

Craig encouraged people to give in the Offering with a smooth rendition of Quiet Time & before the sermon was provided the Band also played My All is on the Altar. Thanks were given to the Corps for hosting us before we were asked to play two final numbers (Dance Before the Lord & I’ll Walk With God) to end our musical ministry in Denmark.  

With the van packed and our coach arriving for the trip to Gothenburg (or Gotham City depending who you ask!), we were treated to another cracking spread of food by the corps. It’s amazing sometimes that you can travel the world with the Salvation Army but be made to feel totally at home. For that we thank all our billets and the people at Copenhagen Temple, making our short stay in Denmark so memorable and starting the tour in a great manner!

And so to Sweden…..

The first day of the tour has already passed after a scorching hot concert at Copenhagen Temple tonight!

Our flight was a short & uneventful 1.5 hour trip with British Airways, but with the chance to explain to a few locals sat around us on the plane who we were and why we are playing concerts in Scandinavia this week. I think our Ribena outfits gave the game away that we are not a normal travelling group!!? Upon landing in Denmark one recently qualified pilot was lucky to be invited into the cockpit and be shown the ropes of an Airbus A319 by the Captain & First Officer. If he happens to post a picture of himself in the Pilot seat don’t be fooled into believing that he actually flew the plane!!

A short coach trip to the Temple from the Airport and we were able to meet up with Wayne & David who had arrived safely after 19 hours on the North Sea with our instruments. The hall itself is an old Army building with a classic gallery that sweeps round behind both Cornet & Trombone sections, and a platform which rises step by step. This left the unloading team with the fun and unenvious task of taking percussion from the van, through the hall and up what seemed like Mount Everest!! George & Matt had a grandstand view & best seats for the whole concert.

Our first meal in Denmark was a Barbecue of Sausages, Beef & various salads and potatoes which the hungry Band gratefully snapped up after the lack of much in flight grub from our national airline. This spicy feast did however lead to some windy incidents on stage, especially from my billet partner during our assistance with Percussion in the Congregational Song!

The weather had been hot and sunny all day, so with Red tunics on we took to the stage for our first concert/gig of the tour. Not only was the on stage temperature scorching but the playing at times in the first half was of a similar ilk. Highlights included a great version of the March – Victors Acclaimed, Starsky being on top form with Bravura & Craig with a sweet version of Gabriels Oboe. Stephen Main (Singing Vocal) & Brian Wright (Vocal) blessed everybody with their contributions in a cracking rendition of To the Chief Musician. The first half ended with Quintessence (nearly without a 2nd Horn player who was seen searching through his folder while Howard introduced the piece! He was reprimanded needless to say for his lack of organisation by both Front Row and his section leader in the interval!)

The interval was a good chance to meet and talk with our hosts who were an appreciative & receptive audience all night, and a debut performance of Boscombe Band’s small brass group equivalent of Mnozil Brass (ahem!!!). Their rendition of Chassidic Dance brought the audience back to their seats for the second half. With the heat and tiredness from a day travelling starting to take it’s toll the second half perhaps failed to reach the heights of the first half, but with Gilbert Ellis introducing the items in Danish the playing of Ascalon in particular was a highlight in the second half. Other pieces included All Glorious, Coming Home & finishing with a new piece from the pen of Robert Redhead called Christ Hymn. After Howard had stood the Band to take the warm applause and a final prayer we played a lovely benediction called Bred Dina Vida Vingar. Without using Google translate some of us believed the name to mean Bread Dinner with Vinegar in English!! However, it’s a gorgeous Swedish tune meaning Spread Your Wings Wide and ended the evening beautifully.

The Band then went their seperate ways to various billets to cool off with much needed cold drink and food. This is sometimes the best times of the tour meeting people and sampling the lifestyle and customs of the country you’re visiting…. And now it’s 1am and time to try and sleep. Not holding much hope with Barney the snoring Walrus in the same room! Night all…