Last night of the proms comes early – 19th June 2010
£1800.00 raised for Help for Heroes Charity

After weeks of preparation by the Owthorpe Village Committee and Charnwood Concert Band we were ready to put our plans into action.  The Band arrived early to set up and have a sound check/practise before the arrival of the audience, who we hoped would be in the mood for a good singalong.   7.30 p.m. was approaching fast and the audience of 250 people were settled and ready to go, as were the band.

We kicked off with a roaring rendition of 633 Squadron, followed by wartime melodies and swing numbers, such as And All That Jazz, Blue Moon and Ain’t Misbehavin’ all sung with vigour by our excellent vocalist Nicci Keelings.
The interval saw us all chomping into beefburgers and hot dogs,  and the barbecue people doing their best to keep up with demand. 

Launching into the second half with the Dambusters March there was quite a surprise to the audience when some fireworks were let off at pre-arranged places; the band were in on it,- couldn’t risk anyone dropping an instrument!  With a more serious repertoire including The Robin Hood Suite and The Blue Danube Waltz, the band finished in the usual fashion with Jerusalem, The British Sea Songs and Pomp and Circumstance No. 1 (Land of Hope and Glory) ably led again by Nicci.  Despite the cold temperature (it was June after all) the audience were in fine spirits and sang with gusto whilst waving flags. 

During the ending of the last number the firework display started, in red, white and blue. What a fantastic end to a great night.  The band went home feeling very cold but satisfied with a job well done. 

Judy Nicol
Musical Director