Sunday afternoon saw a grand celebration of brass at Christ the King College in aid of the Isle of Wight’s continued efforts to raise funds for Ukraine.
The concert featured members from Abbey Brass, Cowes Concert Band, Vectis Brass, the Corps of drums of Medina Marching Band and Vectis Brass Training Band.
Ukraine National Anthem
They came together in a spectacular show of unity and support for Ukraine as they played the Ukraine National Anthem in a grand finale.
Despite there being three conductors in the room, it was admitted that none of them knew how to conduct the Ukraine National Anthem, so Victoria Dunford of MAD-Aid was asked to the take the conductor’s baton.
Norman: Overwhelmed by the support
The event was organised by Andy Norman, musical director of Cowes Concert Band. Andy said he was overwhelmed by the support of the capacity audience.
“Brass for Ukraine was a wonderful experience. Thank you to everyone who came to support the concert.
“We have to thank Kathrin Williams, business manager at Christ the King College for allowing us to use the facilities free of charge and site manager Chris Teague, together with the rest of the Teague family, for working so hard to put everything together.”
The retiring collection and a raffle raised over £1,150 for MAD-Aid.
Andy added,
“We thank Victoria Dunford and MAD-AID for all they are doing to help Ukrainian refugees and are pleased to have contributed in a small way.”
Watch some of the performances
You can watch the grand finale in the video below (courtesy of Chris Jarman).
What is MAD-Aid?
MAD-Aid – which stands both for ‘Medical Aid Delivered’ and ‘Make a Difference’ – was founded by Victoria ten years ago to support children in Moldova, the poorest country in Europe.
From the moment Russia invaded Ukraine, Victoria and her volunteers have worked tirelessly to coordinate shipping lorry-load after lorry-load of donations to Moldova to support displaced Ukrainians, fleeing from their war-torn country.
Find out more
You can find out more about MAD-Aid by visiting their Website, where you can also make a financial donation.
Keep an eye on their social media for details of immediate, medium and long-term needs.
Article edit
12.05pm 3rd May 2022 – Quotes from Andy Norman added
Image: © Chris Jarman
