'Excited' Royal Marines Band Service musicians brave scorching weather in run-up to 'prestigious' performance
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The heat didn’t stop the personnel gearing up for one of their biggest performances
Determined military musicians battled through scorching temperatures to prepare for one of the biggest performances in their calendar.
Personnel from the Royal Marines Band Service (RMBS) marched in unison during intense rehearsals at HMS Excellent on Whale Island. They are gearing up for the Beating Retreat ceremony at Horse Guards Parade in London.
Musician Jack Cottle, of Hayling Island, was pleased with the drills despite the temperature. He told The News: “It was good for a first run through, a bit warm though. It’s something you have to put up with and control. Stay hydrated, behave the night before, and keep your fluids up.”
Musn Cottle said it’s a lot more difficult playing the cornet in near 30C heat. “It adds to the challenge. You have to concentrate harder than usual.”
More than 200 musicians and sailors took part in the rehearsals. They kept in time to the singing and background tunes as they marched across the training area. The odd breakdown of equipment didn’t stop them completing the near 45 minute session, earning them some well deserved rest.
A Royal Navy ceremonial guard travelled between the performers to symbolise the passing of a ship. Musician Emma Sims passed out of full training in January and will be performing in her first Beating Retreat. She thinks the everything is coming together, even though playing the French Horn was challenging in the hot weather.
The Portsmouth-based performer said: “Dealing with the heat is the hardest thing. It’s difficult. You can’t really describe it until you’ve been in that position. You’re thinking about so many different things at once. You’ve got to think about what you're playing, what movements you’re doing next, and you have to keep up.”
When asked how she’s feeling ahead of her first parade, she added: “I'm very excited to go up to London and do the performance. It’s one of the big gigs we do as a mass band. I’ve been in the Scotland band, so it’s nice to do a performance with all my friends in the other bands. I’ve always wanted to join the band and do cool performances.”
Lieutenant Colonel Huw Williams is in charge of the rehearsals. He said despite the extra precautions due to the weather, he’s impressed with the personnel.
“Now its just about detail,” he said. “Making the lines straight, music better, and polishing up the finer details. The structure is all in place. I’m feeling pretty confident.
“By this point in the summer, bands have been on parade doing various things. We’ve just recovered a band from the United States where it was ten degrees hotter than this.
“The bands are used to being outdoors and working in these conditions. It’s down to us as the leaders to make sure we’re very concise in what we’re asking them to do, and not overloading them with information. With clear instructions, they’re very good at correcting things and making it better. It's very efficient.”
Lt Col Williams added that band from the across the country are being brought together or the performance, making it a great reunion. “The morale is pretty good, but the weather is a challenge.
“It’s exciting and this is what I do the job for. The big and prestigious performances, and being able to show the public what the navy does. This is one of the best parts of my job. They’ll be perfect, no doubt.”