Bruce Kent Memorial Concert

Patricia Hammond

A memorable concert dedicated to Bruce Kent took place at St Mellitus Church, Tollington Park on Sunday. The evening was an eclectic mix of different kinds of music and poetry, focussed on issues he campaigned on all his life - peace, nuclear disarmament and social justice.

All profits are going to Progressing Prisoners Maintaining Innocence, a charity which supports and campaigns for the rights of people in prison who maintain that they are innocent. This was one of many causes Bruce supported.

Introducing the concert, Parish Priest Fr Chinedu Udo recalled what a generous and open-hearted person Bruce was. He remembered one day when they went to lunch together in a local cafe and a dog came to sit near them. Bruce thought it looked hungry, so he stood up and asked people in the cafe: "Is this your dog - would you mind if I feed him?" The owners, who were sitting at another table said yes he could - so Bruce shared some of his lunch with the dog.

"In the end it sat with us all the time were there" Fr Udo said. "Bruce Kent cared about everyone. He was like a magnet. He attracted people wherever he went." Later Fr Udo said he learnt that the owner of the dog was the local Anglican vicar who he has since got to know.

Mezzo soprano Patricia Hammond opened the show with the poignant American song 'I Didn't Raise My Boy to be a Soldier' by Ragtime Al Piantasdosi, written at the start of the First World War. Her next song was: 'Somewhere My Love' by Maurice Jarre, from the film Dr Zhivago. She concluded with the 1927 song 'Bless This House' one of the most popular songs of the 20th century - written by two women: May Brahe and Helen Taylor whose names are hardly known (Patricia mentions them in her book She Wrote the Song.)

The next performer was Andrea Kmecowa a classical pianist who also works in music therapy. She gave us a 'Peaceful Sound bath' with music by Chopin Nocturne n0 20 in C# interspersed with the mesmerising sounds of handspans and chimes.

Organist Nicholas Singer then played his beautiful piece 'Our Time Lost' which he composed specially for the parish's WW1 memorial organ as part of their restoration project. This was its second public performance ever!

There was a change of pace when Sally Davies and Daughters sang three beautiful songs in harmony, focusing on the link between peace and climate change: 'The Colour of the Wind,' 'O Zelena' - a traditional Ukrainian song, and 'Restore Our Earth' by Sally Davies.

The multi-genre community band King Toadfish then launched into Bob Dylan's anthem Masters of War.

Hayden Parsey and Gary Holder were the final musical act with their own compositions: 'Streets Are Open Wide' and 'Home Soldier' - which they dedicated to Bruce.

The BAFTA award winning actress Susan Wooldridge concluded the show, reading the beautiful poem: 'Apostle of Peace' by the Welsh poet Mererid Hopwood. See: https://abolishwar.net/poem-for-bruce/

There was a reception in the parish hall after the show. Local MP Jeremy Corbyn was among the guests.

For more information or if you would like to make a donation to Prisoners Maintaining Innocence, See:
www.prisonersmaintaininginnocence.org.uk.

FURTHER LINKS

Patricia Hammond: https://patriciahammond.com/

Hayden Parsey and Gary Holder: http://haydenparsey.com/

King Toadfish band: www.facebook.com/KingToadfish

Sally Davies and Daughters: www.sallydaviesmusic.co.uk