The Salvation Army Chatham

Emma Davis sends a report on this year’s TMS held at the Wycliffe Centre, near Reading.

Emma Davis

Emma writes:

On Saturday 19^th July 2008, around 100 staff and students arrived at the Wycliffe Centre in High Wycombe for this year’s Territorial Music School. The change of venue this year meant that the accommodation was excellent, with all the rooms being en suite.

The worship sessions throughout the week were led by Captain Scott Linnett, who is Personal Assistant to the Territorial Commander, Commissioner John Matear. These sessions of Bible study were fascinating and very well presented, with a lot of interesting and relevant historical background to Bible stories we thought we knew really well.

The Girls’ Chorus, which both Louise Robinson and I were in, was conducted again by Dorothy Nancekievill and Iain Parkhouse. The two brass bands this year were led by Andrew Blyth and Derick Kane. Our hours of rehearsing paid off in both the Mid-week Festival, held in a marquee at the Wycliffe Centre, and the Final Festival in the Hexagon in Reading. Both were well attended and contained excellent musical performances. There was a wide range of songs from the Girls’ Chorus, including “Gaudete”, “Shine on Us”, Oh, Love that Wilt not Let Me Go”, “Mighty to Save”, and “The Answer”.

Louise Robinson

The Bands provided music such as “Easter Glory”, “Laude”, “In Perfect Peace”, “Romans 8″, and a new work “Turris Fortissima”. The timbrels also gave a fantastic performance, which brought a smile to many people’s faces when it ended with an Army salute.

This year, a tradition of past music schools was re-established, by the forming of an ‘A Band’ and ‘A Chorus’, which participants rehearsed for in their free time. All the groups that took part did really well, and the message of Jesus was clearly heard through all the singing and playing.

Our evenings during the week were taken up with all sorts of whole school activities, such as a Quiz Night, a fancy dress Dinner and Dance, and a rather amusing Talent Night to end off the week.

Although there were fewer students at TMS than there were last year, due to the earlier dates, everyone still enjoyed the fellowship at meal times, and in the 5-a-side football tournament, which took place in free time. There was a really open feel this year, as people didn’t stay with the same group of friends all week, they moved around and got to know more people from other Corps.

The final item of the Festival on Saturday was the whole school song, Andrew Blyth’s arrangement of the hymn “Take My Life”, to the tune ‘Hendon’. This benediction was a fitting end to a week when a group of young Christians had been using their time and talents to spread the message to those they came into contact with.

The pictures show (L to R) - The A Chorus in rehearsal, the Girls’ Chorus and the Timbrels (we apologise for the quality of 2 pictures which have been extracted from a video recording)