Page 110 - The Bugle 2018

Salamanca Band and Bugles
The Salamanca Band and Bugles have been busy taking advantage of all the opportunities that life in the Reserves continues to throw at them. There have been several key appointment changes and new initi- atives keeping the team busy and moving forward.
The band’s primary activities include supporting 6 Rifles and other Rifles events and we have provided support to Freedom Parades, Sounding Retreats and the ‘Rifleman’s Gathering’ 17 & 18. The Band were also centre stage throughout the CO’s initiative ‘Wyvern 18’ which proved hugely popular and gave us the chance to show off our skills to over a 1000 local people.
The Band and Bugles have more than proved their worth in supporting the wider Army’s policy of Defence Engagement with much activity in the South Caucuses. The Band and Bugles deployed for the second time, this time for 15 days, to Azerbaijan, Georgia and Armenia, supporting the Queen’s Birthday celebrations in each capital, forming good relationships with local military bands and creating many PR opportunities for the Defence Attaché and his team. The Bugle Major has returned to add his weight to the DA’s work and most recently the Soul Band have completed an 8-day tour for the latest round of QBP’s.
At home we have been busy raising money for several Forces charities. We provided a Big Band for a concert at Flete House supporting the ABF. The programme moved through the different Big Band era’s with Musn Jones’ vocal numbers being particularly popular! We also held Christmas Concerts in Bodmin and Exeter and were delighted to hand over a cheque for £1,000 to The Defence Medical Welfare Service for our efforts!
Band members continue to enjoy the many Adventure Training opportunities available to them; We crewed a 38’ Yacht out of Plymouth for 2 weeks last Summer with a number of the team facing the challenge of the open sea for the first time. Several members have passed their dinghy sailing level 2 and 6 of the band raced in the 6 Rifles Regatta for the first time. The Band also continue to ski whenever possible with participants in the 2 most recent Frosted Wyvern Exercises.
Finally, although recruiting remains a challenge, recently we have recruited some very high calibre musicians and they are already making an invaluable contribution to our work. We continue to ‘fly the flag’ for the Regiment with pride. Our ethos is to grow with excellence and develop our musical prowess, whilst striving to be versatile, adventurous and the most travelled Reserve Band in the British Army! WO1 Lee Clayson - Bandmaster
Firm Base – Wyvern 18
This summer saw the Exeter based headquarters of 6 RIFLES open its gates to the public for the first time in an unprecedented event featuring three evenings of summer concerts. Wyvern Barracks is situated in the heart of Exeter City, but most local people have no idea of what goes on behind the famous red brick wall that surrounds it. The CO wanted to welcome local people into the Barracks to develop relationships with the community, whilst also explaining that The Rifles was their local county regiment, taking forward the links The Devonshire and Dorset Regiment had with the city and the county of Devon.
As part of the Battalion’s efforts to develop Community Engagement (CE), the CO enlisted the help of the BBC, who kindly allowed one of their key regional presenters, David Fitzgerald, to narrate the event. He was also key in supporting the marketing plan; by plugging Wyvern 18 during his lunch time radio show, it ensured the event’s message reached nearly 1.5 million people across the SW. A point to note for all future Regimental CE events. Wyvern 18 was attended by over 1000 people and involved a range of local groups: the world famous Devon folk band ‘Show of Hands’, the Lost Sound choir, ISCA Academy (a local school), Devon ACF and Exeter City Council with perfor- mances by the Salamanca Band and Bugles, the ISCA choir, Devon ACF Corps of Drums, Show of Hands and buglers from 1 RIFLES. The concert followed both the journey and history of the Barracks and The Devonshire and Dorset Regiment (D&D) from the battle of the Bois Des Buttes in May 1918 to the formation of the RIFLES in 2007, as well as the relevance of 6 RIFLES. The event featured the world premiere of ‘Swift and Bold’; a piece composed and performed by Steve Knightley which pays tribute to The Rifles and its history.
The event was exceptionally well received by all those who attended and has resulted in an influx of letters of thanks, contributions of history about the barracks from local people and many requests to utilise the Barracks and to involve The Rifles in future events within the local community. A lot of hard work went into the event, but it was a resounding success and shows that there is significant interest in The Rifles amongst our local communities. Wyvern Barracks and The Rifles have been placed at the heart of the local community it is designed to serve.
2Lt Charles Bromhead (Ac Adjt)
Wyvern 18 from the COs perspective!
116 SIXTH BATTALION
THE RIFLES
Salamanca Band went down very well on the Queen’s Birthday Parades in the South Caucuses