Last Day

We set up in the main square in Ypres this morning and our open air concert was filmed by BBC TV before we had to cut it short due to bad weather.  The Big Band managed to continue performing under the arches.  Here is a clip of them performing Herbie Hancock's Cantaloupe Island with some great solo moments from all of the trumpet section, including our latest recruit, Jhonattan Goncalves from The Vale School.

HYM Big Band - Cantaloupe Island - Ypres, July 2017

In the afternoon we visited the Flanders Fields Museum to see a very detailed exhibition of WW1 memorabilia and explanations of the complexities of that tragic period in history.

This evening we gave our final performance in Ypres Cathedral.  A youth orchestra from Northern Ireland formed the bulk of the audience for the first part of the concert, before they had to leave.  They applauded enthusiastically and gave our young musicians the credit they deserved.

Lots of new friendships have been made and the collaboration has exceeded our wildest dreams.  Thanks especially to Tony, Richard and all the staff and students from The Vale.  Credit to all Big Band members for their musicianship and working together to achieve quick and complex set-ups and break-downs before and after the concerts.

We have just had a competition for the tidiest room and it is going to be very difficult to choose a winner!

A great venture all round.  Many thanks to all the staff and students.

Racing in Ostend

Student voice...

Today we went to the beach. We drove down to Ostend and were given an hour to cause havoc around the town. Between us we rented two nine people pedal cars and bought some chocolate. After setting up by the bandstand the Big Band began and attracted a crowd. The performance was a successs and by the end the whole crowd was dancing, particularly one man who got very into it. After a sunny day in Ostend and a great performance from everyone we all went home, some of us more tired than others...  

Het Perron Theatre - Ypres

Today we performed to a specially invited audience at the local Het Perron theatre.  We later visited the cemetery at Tyne Cot and saw the grave of George Baxter Lowson from Tottenham, about whom the "My Mate George" musical has been written.  Tony Millard gave an inspirational talk at the cemetery to explain how the project came about.  We all struggled to comprehend the number of lives lost in he war and the sadness of it all.  The young people were very respectful and thoughtful.

We were all deeply affected by the experience at the cemetery and the audience responded very enthusiastically to our performance in the theatre.   Here is a clip from the concert with a slideshow of some of our experiences throughout the day.

MY MATE GEORGE - 4/7/17

This evening we played at the Menin Gate. There were a lot of groups laying wreaths so we were asked to play two pieces rather than one.  After the buglers played The Last Post and we had a minute of silence, the Big Band played Londonderry Air followed by Sad News. The young musicians excelled themselves.  Several people came up to us afterwards to thank us for our contribution. It was very moving, especially when we were looking at the names of the thousands  of soldiers who gave their lives 100 years ago. Many of us found names of people with our own surnames.

Arrived safely

All arrived safely and tucking into supper!

Welcome

Welcome to the blog for our trip with The Vale School and HYM Big Band to Ypres, Belgium in July 2017. Visit  this page each day to check on our progress, see pictures and video clips, and hear news from the young people involved.

Peter Desmond
Tony Millard