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An outdoor concert featuring two of the best military bands in the world will mark 25 years since the IRA bombing of a Kent barracks.
The public performance by the two bands from Her Majesty’s Royal Marines will take place at Deal Memorial Bandstand on Walmer Green on Sunday, July 13.
During the concert, the bandstand will be rededicated to the memory of 11 musicians from the Royal Marines School of Music who lost their lives when the IRA bombed Deal’s North Barracks in September 1989.
The metalwork of the bandstand was refurbished earlier this year. Eleven of the 12 sides of the bandstand are named after the 11 musicians of the Royal Marines School of Music, and the 12th side is the entrance.
Sunday’s 2pm concert by the Portsmouth band will form the centrepiece of a whole afternoon of commemorative music, which starts at 12.30pm and goes on until 5pm.
Visitors to the event will enjoy a fly-past by the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight’s Spitfire and Hurricane aircraft before the first half of the concert by HM Royal Marines Band Portsmouth commences at 2pm.
After the interval, a second band – HM Royal Marines Band Collingwood – will march to join the Portsmouth band at the bandstand. It will leave from Deal and Betteshanger Rugby Club at 3.45pm and take in a route along Canada Road, Halliday Drive and The Strand.
The audience at Walmer Green will be able to follow the parade on large screens. The two bands will then join forces to complete the second half of the programme, during which the rededication will take place and wreaths will be laid.
Major John Perkins, who was a Lieutenant at Deal Barracks at the time of the bombing, is chairman of the Deal Memorial Bandstand Trust, which hosts brass band concerts on Sunday afternoons throughout the summer.
He said: “I have a driving passion and commitment to keep the bandstand concerts going, as they are a living memorial to those killed. I want to ensure they continue for generations to come.”
HM Royal Marines Band Portsmouth are one of the most respected military bands in the county. Watch their performance at the Festival of Remembrance 2010 below for a taste of what to expect at the weekend.
Video: HM Royal Marines Band Portsmouth at the Festival of Remembrance 2010
STILL TO COME THIS SUMMER
Brass bands take to Deal Memorial Bandstand at 2.30pm on most Sundays. Some coming up include:
More details at www.dealbandstand.org
