Nairobi - Tuesday
Whilst the The Band of The Household Cavalry have been working hard in Basel, two of its members, Captain David Hammond and Lance Corporal Lee Marshall were deployed to Kenya, East Africa, to work with the Kenya Army Band and provide musical support to the British High Commission, as well as to the British Army Training Unit Kenya (BATUK). They are accompanied by four members of the The Band of The Prince of Wales's Division (PofW Band), Colour Sergeant 'B...arny' Bowden and Musicians Gary Hunter, Morgan Marston and David Tutty, to make up an ensemble comprising brass quintet plus bassoon.
Over the past few days the team has been working with the KAB, sharing experiences and understanding different styles of performance. For the Corps of Army Music's musicians, it has been particularly interesting to learn the correct way to perform the Kenya National Anthem, and also to be introduced to Kenyan marches, such as that based upon the gospel tune 'Kwetu Pazuri'. The rehearsals have been focused on putting together a joint Beating Retreat for performance at the end of the week, and the KAB Director of Music, Major Martin Makadia, has been very gracious in allowing Capt Hammond to conduct the band. Major Makadia, a graduate of the Royal Military School of Music, Kneller Hall in London, is understandably well-versed in British military music traditions and it has been a delight to be able to share techniques, ideas, and of course anecdotes, with him.
The Corps of Army Music team has been made very welcome and looks forward to continuing the work during the week. More updates to follow.
