Unofficial Christ's Hospital Forum

Can I pick the brains of someone who has done this before please?

The flyer states "All Gates open from 2.00pm
The Ceremony begins at 3.00pm
Term ends at 4.00pm"

Does arriving at 2pm mean you get to load some, if not all your children's things into the car before "The Ceremony"?
Is the parking situation worse for the end of this term than it is for the others?
Realistically, what time is it possible to be away by?

It's a l o n g drive, so just trying to get timings sorted out in my mind.

Weather looks promising!

As long as your child is organised enough to be ready at 2 then yes, you can get packed - this is what we try to do so we can be off once it's finished.

To all those attending their first Beat Retreat - stand by and prepare to be seriously impressed by the talent of the band!!

Thank-you.

Yada Yada - you were so right - I stood in absolute awe for 45 minutes ... it was amusing because my DD started by saying "yup - we have this every day ..." with a kind of "seen it, been there, done that" attitude - by 10 minutes in she was spell bound! It was wonderful and a fitting end to our first year.

So how do you get to be one of the baton twirly people? Or the cymbals, I think my son could manage the cymbals!

pinkhebe wrote:So how do you get to be one of the baton twirly people? Or the cymbals, I think my son could manage the cymbals!

Baton twirly people - LUV IT !!

Drum Major is the correct term.

I don't know if it is still the case, but in my day, DM's were always selected from one house. Might well have been Peele, but I'm not sure. John H would be able to tell you !

The drum majors always come from Middleton A. Dd thinks the ceremonial drummers come from Maine.

That sounds like discrimination to me, rather than tradition! What if there is a child in another house with a burning passion, and perhaps the aptitude to be a drum major?

I don't think there has ever been a girl as a drum major.

I have it on very good authority that things will be changing - at last!

I

I

As a recent former drum major (and head drum major), I would just like to say that I am completely against this. Mid A has always been the house that provides the band with the drum majors, a tradition that stretches back even before the houses were divided up as Senior and Junior sides. I know that that is no reason for it to continue, but Drum majoring is an important part of the house and its identity, indeed a certain 'brotherhood' (I use the term somewhat loosely) exists among the drum majors in the house. To take away the tradition of drum majoring from Mid A would cause problems up and down the avenue, as it would mean Barnes A would have to surrender its right to provide the cymbals, Maine A its right to provide the tenor drummers, and so on. This would cause unnecessary problems for the band at a time when it can sorely afford them, and I would remind you all of the famous saying 'if something ain't broke, don't try and fix it.' After what was described as 'one of the best performances in the last 12 years' by the band at Lord's and Beating Retreat, this is clearly the case. My big fear is that this could have a seriously detrimental effect on the band, and harm its ability to provide quality entertainment at venues such as Lord's and Twickenham (along with the advertising and bragging rights that this gives the school). The drum majors, as has already been mentioned, have very little to work with in terms of resources, and it is a testament to them that they get by, and a testament to the Mid A old blues who pay for most of the equipment (special mention must be made to Peter Farnfield and co. here). Why should the headmaster dictate about something he knows very little about, or provides for the school himself? We have around 7 maces between us, only 5 of which are currently usable! If it were to open up to the whole school, the recruitment process would cause havoc (you can imagine the scenes, 2 drum majors trying to teach and exert some level of control over what could potentially be, owing to its popularity, 50 plus kids at least, all at the same time). Training would go through the window, the overall level of skill would decline, maces would get damaged and broken far more frequently, and the whole thing would go 'tits up' very quickly indeed. The sense of brotherhood would disappear completely. HOWEVER, if the current headmaster is willing to provide the drum majors with ADEQUATE resources to cater for his schemes, then I am sure that the Mid A drum majors would be more than willing to give it a go. Unfortunately, I am told he is too busy frittering away the money on pointless advertising campaigns and PR to help the school attract more full fee payers (but that is a rant 'like no other' for another day). I know that I'm coming across slightly on a rant, but it is a subject which means a great deal to me, and I see it as another part of 'old CH' which is being destroyed permanently on a whim, without any consultation or forethought. The school is rapidly becoming a school 'just like any other.'

Such passion, Andy, over something so pointless ill becomes you.
Traditionally Coleridge was a boys block until 1985.
Traditionally young students/pupils had to wipe tables.
Traditionally Grecians used to be the only pupils allowed to walk on the Grecians path until 2001.
Times change, things change.

Why should a child be debarred from taking part in an activity because (s)he is placed in such and such a house aged 11, or they happen to be of the "wrong sex" ?

I am sure that there are bigger fish to fry than this one.

Firstly, I'm not Andy/Andrew, I'm afraid I'm not that recent!
Secondly, my point was not that a child should not be able to participate in drum majoring purely because they are not in Mid A. My point was that it would become so hard to administer and run, with so many prospective young drum majors, that it could end up killing off the institution entirely, or severely crippling it, which would be in no one's interests. Why do you think these things were divided up among the houses in the first place? Things do change, which I can well appreciate, but not without adequate funding, and I fail to see where this is going to come from, as it certainly won't come from the school! Mid A old blues would be loathe to fund such a project which they would see as detrimental to their old house. The problem is that by opening it up to the whole school, you will eventually make it available to nobody.
Lastly, I do not regard this as a minor issue, but rather I see it as part of the bigger picture. The ethos of the school is at stake, as such a move by the headmaster would throw into question the 'traditional' recruitment into specialist roles within the band. Without the link to houses, certain positions may be left unfilled, or suffer a large drain on recruitment. This would have a huge affect on the overall quality of the band and its ability to function, and may prevent it from punching well above its weight in the future. I look forward to your reply.