Clarence Adoo Festival - 29th March 2003

At about 2pm on Saturday 29th March, 28 bandsmen from 12 different bands met for the first time to rehearse for the concert to be held that evening to raise money for the Clarence Adoo Trust Fund. They had travelled from places as far away as Cambridge and Bristol. All of the men (interestingly there were no female players) have at some time in their lives had connections with The Salvation Army and now from time to time give concerts to raise funds for various charitable projects, under the banner of Midlands Brass.

David Bartle, who has personally known the Adoo family since the 1960s, organised the evening. It was good that Clarence had been able to make the journey from Newcastle for the weekend accompanied by one of his carers. His sister was also present on Saturday night.

Clarence Adoo, the Trumpet Man, was a successful professional musician when he was involved in a near fatal car accident on 19th August 1995 and broke his neck. Since then he has been paralysed from the shoulders down. We watched part of a documentary made by the BBC that described what had happened and how it had affected his life. In an interview with David Nicholson, it was humbling to hear Clarence talk of the Grace of God which helps him cope with his disability and enables him to live a fulfilling and enjoyable life.

The programme was very varied and had music for every taste ranging from the overture The Magic Flute through Lightwalk to the great Army classics Call of the Righteous by Les Condon and Kingdom Triumphant by Eric Ball. Four solo items were presented together with a cornet trio. Two highlights for me were the sparkling trombone solo The Bluebells of Scotland performed by Kevin Lea and Michael Barratt’s flugel horn solo I’d Rather Have Jesus.

Special guests for the night were the Citadel Singing Company. We have come to expect something special whenever they sing and we were not disappointed. They captivated some of the bandsmen with their enthusiasm and exuberance and the words of their songs were most fitting for the occasion. Their songs included One Step at a Time and You are the Light.
The evening was a great success raising a magnificent £1,100 which will go to the Trust Fund and will enable Clarence to continue to enjoy a little independence and do some of the simplest things in life that we all take for granted.

Words extracted from Citadel Scene, our Corps Magazine.
Janet Vincent