GRENADIER GUARDS BAND

Press, Volume LXX, Issue 21354, 22 December 1934, Page 4

GRENADIER GUARDS BAND

—«— MEMORABLE SCENE ON ARRIVAL The entry into Auckland t>f His Majesty's Grenadier Guards Band, which is to make its first appearances here at the- Theatre Royal on Wednesday afternoon and evening next, and four following nights, under the direction of Messrs J. and N. Tait, will long be remembered by those who were fortunate to witness the occasion. Thousands of people waited at the wharf long before the Wanganella arrived and when the ship eventually got alongside and the Guards were seen on the deck, the crowd started to cheer. The banasmen of Auckland, representatives of the military, naval, and civil bands, played popular melodies until the members of the Grenadier Guards Band were released from the ship, and then started the most remarkable procession ever known in New Zealand. It was a difficult matter for the mounted troopers and the police to create a path for the bandsmJrn ' , E0 dense was the crowd on the * ? r i' ™ ut eventually this was effected. The crowd gradually grew as the guards m their scarlet and gold' uniforms and their bearskin caps, together with their escorts, marched up to , t heir own music and local bandsmen. It is estitho 5 lif ? ve s 100 >°00 people lined the street, stood on verandahs, and peeped from the numerous windows As the crowd grew so did the cheering increase and indescribable scenes of enthusiasm took place when the f enadier- Guards ultimately arrived at in n To those caught £j*U Crush ■ was an ything but a pleasant morning, but the brilliant spectacle and the martial music of the long procession, with the Grenadier Guards bringing up the rear, compensated for the traffic jams and the lone waiting. The initial concert presented by the Grenadier Guards Band was enjoyed by an audience that filled every nook and corner of the Town Hall and to suggest that they achieved an' ?t Ve^ he '^? g su A ccess would bl to put it too mildly. An audience at a Guards Band concert does not reauire fare such as a symphony orchestra could Provide. A Guards Band is not a Bayreuth festival combination. Rather it represents the peak of militarv &S & i C 2^ plete organisation behind it, it is led by a musician who is a military officer, not by an academic or by a virtuoso. It sets out in it* very existence what it is and what can do. The combination of the Guards band becomes an enthralling study for those anxious to hear music Its work appeals to all equally. The director of the music is Major G. Miller, M.8.E., who has the distinction of being one of the most distinguished musicians in England. The box plans are now open at the D.1.C., and only five nights can be allotted to the Christchurch season.