Southend Citadel Hosts “Two-in-One” Festival

Southend Citadel Corps hosted a “Two-in-One” Festival on Saturday, 22 October 2005. The concert featured two bands: the South London Fellowship Band (conducted by Major George Whittingham) and the London North East Divisional Band (Bandmaster Geoff Jordan). The concert was presented in a three-part format, led off by the Divisional Band, followed by the Fellowship Band, and concluding with some items by the massed bands.

The Divisional Band led off with Michael Kenyon's A Sonata of Praise and Moments with the Masters (Bramwell Coles). The band also featured their principal cornet, Keith Johnston, who played Gordon Langford's arrangement of Mascagni's Intermezzo.

The second portion of the program, featuring the Fellowship Band, opened with Jubilation (James Curnow). Ivor Bosanko's euphonium solo My Unchanging Friend was played by Bram Chestney, and the trombone section was featured in Frolic for Trombones (Reginald Heath). The Fellowship Band's part of the festival concluded with another medley of classical transcriptions, Melodies of Dvorak (Ray Steadman-Allen).

The bands joined as a massed band for the last part of the concert. They began with To God Be the Glory (Dean Goffin). Vocal soloist Leslie Swift sang A Different Man (Gowans/Larsson). The bands concluded with two classic items by George Marshall, Great and Glorious and Mighty To Save.

The evening was ably coordinated and chaired by the commanding officer of the Southend Citadel Corps, Major Geoffrey Ashdown, who also gave a short devotional message during the concert.