Newbury town band pack their bags for Belgium, first stop Ypres

WATERSHIP Brass players and supporters packing their bags to get on their way to Belgium for their long-awaited tour, from Friday to Tuesday.

This will be the first tour since they went to Prague in 2018. They be based in the mediaeval town of Bruges, described by tourist brochures as like walking in a fairy tale, so they are looking forward to exploring one of Europe’s best-preserved cities, with its picturesque cobbled lanes, canals and pretty market squares lined with soaring towers and historical churches, before travelling to each of the venues in the afternoons.

Bronwen Davies says: “Our first venue will be in Ypres, which of course played a huge role in the First World War and has since been totally rebuilt to serve as a monument to those who lost their lives in this city.

“Those of us who were on a previous tour to Belgium will have poignant memories of playing at the Meningate, one of the memorials to the men with no known grave.

“This will be a joint concert with De Brasserie Ieper, part of a thriving local music group based in Ypres, whose members include a former colleague of our musical director Mark Picken.

“After that, it will be the ‘hops city’ of Poperinge, the coastal city of Ostend, and then on our way home, as we near the French border, we’ll stop off for a final concert in De Panne.

“At all of these concerts, we’ll be bringing our usual mix of popular music, traditional British marches and hymns, but will also include a Belgian flavour with an arrangement of the Flemish folk song t’Smidje.”

Musical director Mark says: “We’re excited to be taking 28 local players and our guests to play four concerts across Belgium.

“We are very much looking forward to sharing our love of music with our Belgian friends.”