This weekend I joined the Marple Band for their first carolling gigs of the season. The first one at Marple Winter Wonderland started with a short march behind Santa’s sleigh which unfortunately turned into a short swim so we made the executive decision to skip that and jump straight into playing carols by the stalls under a gazebo which nearly blew away!
This could have been a disaster but the band were so lovely, cheery, and fun that I really enjoyed it despite being so cold, and I know I’m biased but I thought we sounded great! Shout out to our brilliant drummer (Charles) who sat in a puddle the entire time and still stayed positive and sounded ace.
The second job was at Dobbie’s Garden centre and the weather was much brighter. It was so much fun playing for all the running Santas. My favourite bit was seeing them all on the tiny train. Finally, we played at the Co-op petrol station.
I’ve just started playing again after a short break during Covid, it was great to get back to banding and there’s no better way to do it than playing Christmas carols in my opinion. I like to think this weekend’s music brightened people’s days and made them feel festive!
Article by Tabitha McAlpine
