Aylesbury Concert Band — Park Summer Concert

The Concert in Aylesbury takes place each year in the Park adjacent to the Aquavale Public Swimming Pool. Due to the necessity for Band members’ vehicle numbers being registered before arrival at the Car Park on this occasion, I was not the chauffeur of my daughter and her Saxophone, but a passenger.

This year it took place on one of the hottest ever days, making it extremely heavy-going in the oppressive heat, resulting in the rehearsal being truncated due to not only the sun making it difficult for the players being able to see the Conductor, but also extremely tough if they were to survive till the evening’s performance. 

In addition there was a preliminary photo shoot of the Band members for future publicity purposes in their full concert dress and, with their instruments.This took place in the small amount of shade afforded by the trees in the Park opposite the Swimming Pool.

Due to the Band members’ vehicle numbers being registered before arrival at the Car Park, on this occasion, I was not the chauffeur of my daughter and her Saxophone, but a passenger. I had brought along three lenses to use, my general purpose all rounder zoom; the 24-70mm, the 70-200mm and the 100-400mm, and I would be using the EOS R body throughout.

I told myself I would be sparing in the number of shots I would be taking to minimise the subsequent time at the computer due to the high temperatures expected, however that did not happen, so it was not going to be a speedy run once back in front of the Computer. (Upper case — as at present with the larger file sizes of the EOS R has meant I have become its slave because it is taking more time to process the shots due to this increased individual size).

The high temperature brought another problem — keeping every instrument in tune, and in the interlude between rehearsal and Concert, considerable effort was made to ensure each instrument was in tune, and here technology was playing its part as individuals were being calibrated with the aid of small electronic samplers, so I captured these efforts in the cooler shade outside the inferno of the Stage.

The Audience had been swelling and sweltering all the while and as the sun lowered, it was shining directly into the players’ eyes as the Concert started, but the heat did not abate for some while, making hats and dark glasses ‘de rigour’, but the large gathering of families showed its appreciation by applauding, and several of the really young danced in the space between the front of the crowd and the Stage; cartwheeling and dancing, and waving flags.

Although there is an obvious difference in the Singers’ and Musicians’ attire between Rehearsal and Concert, to the Audience this transition is blurred, all is performance and fun, and enjoyed equally and informally, and simply the end of several days of enjoyment culminating in the Fireworks display after a short speech by the Mayor.

I hope that my images convey at least some of the enjoyment shared by all who attended and serve as a memory of family fun in the Park.

Birthday-Part II – Brooklands Visit

My actual Birthday this year fell on the Saturday, and both my daughters were unable to join me, or have me over to one of their homes, so a happy solution was arrived at whereby I was going to be celebrating over two days, and having thoroughly enjoyed the weekend’s first day in London with the elder daughter and one of my twin grandchildren, Poppy who had recently entered Halls of Residence.

Day Two, the Sunday, involved my driving to Quainton and my younger daughter’s new home, where I would become a passenger for the trip to Brooklands and its Museum. Both children were looking forward to the day, not so much for being with me, but more about what was on offer, as there were so many things to see and enjoy; it was a familiar venue they both relished.

The journey was broken by a stop for some food and was not burdened by excessive traffic though the day was not quite as warm as the day previous, but was equally bright. There were plenty of visitors, but it was not overcrowded, and we took a leisurely stroll around, and I indulged in some camera-clicking, and capturing the two youngsters enjoying the tracing, the overloading of a boat, the dropping of a bomb, and especially the driving a car around a circuit in the simulator were highlights of their day, as well as visiting one of the workshop areas and riveting a small piece of aluminium to create a an aircraft were highlights.

Later we were on different sides of the Hill as we watched different vehicles climb the steep gradient that climbs towards Brooklands famous Banking. On this occasion, there was nothing spectacular and none failed to make it, though the pace for some was on the gentle side. Also, some vehicles definitely were appearing a second time, though possibly with swapped drivers.

On this visit, I learned more of Brooklands’ History that I had not known before, and it was why I made a point of taking photos of the Descriptive Boards, such that I could read them later at leisure. Although I took many photos of the children enjoying themselves, I have really been laughing out loud as I have spotted amusing interactions I had missed whilst actually taking the pictures, so really I am spreading the enjoyment of my Birthday even beyond the weekend. I count myself very lucky to have a wonderful family, who have on this occasion made it last so long.