I’m deeply honoured to have been invited to sing for the 110th commemoration of the Battle of the Somme.

The first day of the Battle of the Somme, 1st July 1916, was the bloodiest day in British military history, with around 57,000 casualties in a single day.

Due to the extreme conditions – men and boys fighting machines in heavy mud – many of the dead were missing, either blown to pieces or sunk in the mud. The names of the missing are recorded on the Thiepval Memorial: over 72,000 men and boys from Britain, Ireland, and South Africa. The tragedy for their relatives and friends must have been immense: not knowing if the person would ever return, worrying that they were still alive but suffering or that they had been taken prisoner. The huge monument reflects this tragedy: it was described by F.R. Durham as “an empire of the silent dead.”

I will sing at the Thiepval Memorial in a ceremony on 1st July. For tickets and further information, please use this link.

The commune of Grangues gathers each year on 7th June to commemorate four local aspects of the Battle of Normandy.

First we stood at the memorial to the British and Canadian airmen, some of whom died in crashes. Eight of the survivors were taken to the castle at Grangues and shot when they were prisoners of war. Allegedly they tried to escape, but I heard from descendants of those living in Grangues during the war that they were injured and the enemy did not wish to care for them, so they were shot at close range. I sang ‘Going Home’ and led the anthems.

We then made our way to the doors of the church to commemorate the civilians of Grangues who died in the war. The list is uncomfortably long for such a small commune, the surnames the same as members of the organisation and the graves in the church cemetery.

Third, we went to the ashes of Wally Trout, who parachuted into Grangues when his plane caught fire and hid in the valley. He was taken prisoner and sent to a camp Stalag 4B near Dresden. He survived and witnessed the liberation of the camp by the Russians.

After the war, he returned regularly to Grangues and the area, and spoke to school children about the war. His message was clear: “never again.”

One of his final requests was that his ashes should be taken to Grangues, and this request was honoured. This year, I sang ‘Danny Boy’ at his memorial.

Finally, we went to a plaque for the French Resistance fighter Léon Tardy who lived in Grangues. Before he joined the resistance, in 1940, he sheltered two Englishmen who were unable to escape from Dunkerque, disguising them as seasonal workers from Bretons to masque their lack of French. Eventually, he organised their return to England. He also saved two Americans, three Canadians, and one Norwegian. In March 1944 he was arrested and deported: he died on 1^stMay 1945. His motto was “Live free or die.”

Arromanches is a commune on Gold Beach: a seaside town which reminds me a little of Scarborough. But unlike Scarborough, in the sea and on the beach, remains of the artificial harbours built to support the D-Day landings can still be seen. Eighty-two years ago, the beach was stormed as British and other allied troops made their way ashore.

For many years on 6th June, the town has hosted a veterans’ parade, with a short Act of Remembrance and a tasteful sing-a-long, in order to bring the more sombre commemorations on 6th June to a close. I’ve been singing there for the last eleven years.

Even though the moment feels joyful, there is still the lingering sense that the songs I sang were sung to raise the spirits of those going into a very tough battle, those who knew they – or their friends – might not survive. It is very much a double-edged sword.

Here is a short video showing the atmosphere: listen to the end to hear 100 year old veteran Ken Hay take over the singing.

This year, the Commonwealth War Grave Commission’s ceremony at Bayeux Cathedral was supported by the British Army Band Tidworth, Jedburgh Pipe Band, and Portsmouth Cathedral Choir, and led by the Bishop of Bayeux and the Rev. Dr. Jonathan Knight.

I helped behind the scenes planning the Order of Service, and I felt there were some very beautiful moments. The Torch of Peace was anticipated by a beautiful performance of Morten Lauridsen’s ‘O Nata Lux,’ and brought in to ‘Nimrod.’ At the end, we sang “The Day Thou Gavest” which was followed by “Sunset,” complete with the lowering of the standards. Tosh MacDonald, the Pipe Major, played the lament walking from the west door of the church to the alter, echoing the path of the Torch of Peace and perhaps linking the sacrifice of the fallen to the peace we enjoy today.

I sang the ‘Ave Maria’ attributed to Caccini after the Act of Remembrance, and led ‘Highland Cathedral’ after the service.

The Spirit of Normandy Trust organised their annual ceremony at ‘Monty’s’ statue. This year, two British veterans, Ken Hay and Henry Rice, were present, making the pilgrimage to the battle grounds of Normandy. Ken Hay spoke about seeing the names on the memorial and being able to remember the faces.

Henry David Montgomery, 3^rd Viscount Montgomery of Alamein gave a speech together with representatives of the region. There was a strong presence from the British Armed Forces, including the Air Cadets and members of the Gurkha Regiment. It was really moving to see the veterans lay their wreaths and to experience the warm support of the public.

I led the hymns and anthems and sang with Jedburgh Pipe Band during the ceremony.

This year’s trip to Normandy began with a small ceremony at a single grave. Private William Joseph Cliffe, a batman, was only twenty when he was shot whilst delivering a message for Captain ‘Chum’ Budds. Chum visited the grave every year until 2004, having lived with the sense of guilt that it was due to his request that Cliffe was killed. His nephew, Shaun Caveney, continued the tradition and handed it to Paul Foster.

It is intensely poignant visiting a single grave and hearing the story of one person from the Normandy Campaign. Sometimes the scale of the tragedy of war becomes clouded in the face of statistics: hearing a single person’s story restores the focus on the human cost.

I’ll be travelling to Normandy to sing for the D-Day commemorations, including British, Canadian, and French ceremonies in Vauville, Colleville-Montgomery, Bayeux Cathedral, Arromanches, and in the beautiful commune of Grangues, for organisations including the Spirit of Normandy Trust and the Commonwealth War Graves Commission. I’ve also worked behind the scenes for the latter putting together an Order of Service for the ceremony in Bayeux Cathedral, which will have some very beautiful moments.

This year I was honoured to be invited by the Australian Ambassador to the Netherlands, His Excellency Dr. Greg French, to sing the ANZAC Day ceremony in The Hague. He chose two poignant songs that were fitting: the first, the ANZAC version of “I am Australian” which is about how remembrance can unite people, and the second, “A Song for Grace,” which is the personal story of a lady who lost her brother in the war. You can listen in the video below.

There were over 250,000 casualties in the Battle of Arras. For perspective, that is the equivalent of the entire population of Brighton or Aberdeen. It was brutal: characteristic of the First World War it was men and boys fighting against machines, machines designed to obliterate.

Some 24,000 allied troops spent their last night in the tunnels under Arras, rushing out before dawn on 9th April into the first day of battle. Each year, at dawn on 9th April, ambassadors and representatives of the nations involved in the battle gather for a dawn ceremony at the Wellington Tunnels. This year there were representatives from New Zealand as the tunnels were dug by largely Māori tunnelers.

The ceremony included readings of letters and diaries: it focused on the experiences and memories of those who fought in the battle., not on politics or victories My two songs were also from the First World War. It was poignant to see the peaceful sunrise knowing the hell the men went through in 1917.

Together with singers Nataliia Cioban and Marnie Baumer, I joined the Band of Liberation for a fundraising concert for their trip to Normandy this June. The band will support ceremonies of one of the British Parachute Regimental Association. Although I won’t be able to join them in Normandy, I was glad to support their tour by singing during their concert in Leiden’s City Hall: it was so much fun sharing the stage with Nataliia and Marnie!

The Dutch Veterans’ Institution provides support for veterans and their loved ones. 

Singing at the Veterans’ Institution is a beautiful and emotionally challenging experience. On the one hand, there is the pleasure of sharing the joy I find in music with others. On the other hand, there is the awareness of the physical and mental suffering of those who chose to serve in the Dutch armed forces.

Lyrics can take on different meanings in this context. The silence of “Silent Night” May be a truce, rather than simply the middle of the night. “Amazing Grace” feels like it is about the luck – or grace – of surviving. 

It was a joy and an honour to join Natiliia and Slava Cioban, the Band of Liberation and Simon Dubbelaar to perform in their annual Christmas concert. 

What a joyful evening! Yesterday the QPO Foundation organised a dinner onboard SS Rotterdam, the former flagship of the Holland America line, with guests from the Netherlands, the UK, and the US, including our minister of defence, Ruben Brekelmans. 

It was truly an honour to present the Dutch marines’ hymn, in a special arrangement by Ron Cuijpers, with the combo of the Marine Band of the Royal Netherlands Navy. 

It was lovely to join the West Yorkshire Police Band on their tour to Belgium to sing on this year’s armistice day. We performed in the Menin Gate and at Tyne Cot Cemetery. Still more heart-warming was seeing the many people who made the pilgrimage to Ypres.

The officers and soldiers who fought in the Battle of Passchendaele passed through Ypres, so it is poignant that those who were reported missing – those who died and whose bodies were never found, so those who have no grave – are commemorated on the Menin Gate. This gave the people they left behind a place to remember them.

Still more poignant is the fact that the immense Menin Gate, with its 54,593 names, was too small to commemorate all the missing. New Zealanders and those who were missing after 16^th August 1917 are commemorated at Tyne Cot – a further 35,971 men and boys, along side 11,961 grave, 8,373 of which contain unidentified people.

We supported the Last Post Ceremony at the Menin Gate and the annual commemoration at Tyne Cot on 11^th November, in the presence of various diplomats and other VIPs.

I’ll be supporting British, Northern Irish, and Irish ceremonies in Thiepval, the Ulster Tower, and Guillemont to commemorate the Battle of the Somme, one of the darkest moments in British military history. Men ran towards gun fire through mud: a horrendous imbalance between man and machine, and in many ways the beginning of the warfare we have today.

If you are able, I recommend making the pilgrimage to the Somme. It is beautifully peaceful, and yet scarred by thousands of white headstones representing those who risked everything for this peace.

The Dutch have a warm-hearted tradition of honouring their veterans on the last Friday of June: each city or town organises an event, usually a meal, to bring local veterans together. This year I’ve been asked to sing in Leiden as part of the city council’s programme. I’m really looking forward to it!

On 8th June I sang for 22 US veterans in the Abbaye aux Hommes, the city hall of Caen.

Best Defense Foundation, supported by Delta Airlines, Michelin, Next Gen, and a warm and wonderful team of volunteers, arranged the tour in a specially chartered plane from Atlantis to Deauville – a rare event as the airport does not usually receive trans-Atlantic flights.

The motto of the foundation is “Taking care of the ones who took care of us.”

Cpl. Jack Myers, Company B, 692nd Tank Destroyer Battalion, attached with the 104th and 42nd Infantry Division

SSgt Jake M. Larson – “Papa Jake,” G3, V Corps

SSgt George K. Mullins, Co. C, 327th Glider Infantry Regiment, 101st Airborne Division, author of “Foxholes”

Perhaps the greatest honour of all was being asked to lead “The Star-Spangled Banner” for the veterans’ farewell dinner.

And the memory that will stay with me forever was Jack Myers pure joy when he asked me to sing “How Great Thou Art.”

The glider pilots played a fundamental role in the Normandy campaign, transporting troops and equipment. Being towed in a mostly wooden glider was not without risk.

The Glider Pilot Regiment Society was established to remember the glider pilots, bring veterans and descendants together, and to pass on the history of the Glider Pilots. In 2022 they unveiled a memorial in Ranville, and today I supported their ceremony, along with the members of Massed Bands of the Pegasus Memorial.

The story of the crew of the plane that was shot down near Grangues is tragic and awful. The surviving airmen were taken as prisoners of war and shot. The people of the commune hold a three part ceremony each year to remember the airmen, and the villagers who died, and finally a British airman called Wally Troutt.

Troutt parachuted over Grangues on 6th June 1944 when his plane caught fire. He was taken prisoner of war and marched to the Dresden camp. Miraculously, he survived and was liberated by Russian forces in April 1945. He returned to Grangues and Ranville to speak to children and share his message about war: never again.

Troutt’s wish was that his ashes would be taken back to Grangues so he could rest in the valley. He was honoured in the third and final ceremony.

The afternoon ceremony in Arromanches on 6^th June concluded with a sing along. Thank you to Ken Hay for joining in “We’ll Meet Again,” and to Henry Rice for “Auld Lang Syne.” Watch until the end to see Henry’s special dance!

Bayeux War Cemetery is the final resting place of over 4,000 people, over ten percent of whom are German and buried alongside allied enemy forces. The peacefulness of the cemetery is perhaps a good reminded of the futility of war.

Just as last year, I helped draw up the Order of Service, which on request of one of the organisations involved included a German segment in which “Der Gute Kamerad” was read and played. Afterwards, we invited the public to reflect during Leonard Cohen’s “Hallelujah.” This was something of a childhood dream come true: when I was young, most cathedral choirs did not accept girls. I always wanted to sing in such a choir and dreamt about how I might be accepted in one. If only I had known that, years later, I I would join fifteen world-class trebles from Christ Church, Oxford, to sing to Second World War veterans and other VIPs.

“Hallelujah,” with The Choristers of Worcestershire College Oxford, directed by Caius Lee, and accompanied by Staff Sergeant Bandmaster Andrew Hall of the British Army Band Tidworth.

The wreath-laying was especially moving. A chorister began the ritual by placing a wreath for his ancestor, buried at Bayeux War Cemetery. The formal wreath laying ended when veterans themselves placed wreaths. I found it moving to sing “You’ll never walk alone” after seeing the veterans struggle to walk in order to honour their companions of over eighty years ago. They have not been forgotten, nor do the veterans walk alone.

“You’ll never walk alone,” British Army Band Tidworth, Captain Peter Brydon.

On 6th June, looking out over Gold Beach which would have been utter carnage eighty-one years ago, we honoured the veterans and the fallen of the Normandy Campaign at the breath-taking British Normandy Memorial in Ver sur Mer, France. The ceremony was organised by the Spirit of Normandy Trust.

On the evening of 5th June we stood still in Bayeux Cathedral for the fallen of the Battle of Normandy, for those who returned bearing the scars of war, those who mourned, and all who are victims of war.

“I’ll Walk with God,” Webster and Brodszky, British Army Band Tidworth, conducted by Captain Peter Brydon

As well as singing, I also drew up the Order of Service. Peace was a major theme. For me, the reading by Dietrich Bonhöffer stood out: he wrote the remembrance is “seeing that which is past, and which we remember today, with all its terrors and all its godlessness, and yet not being afraid, but hearing the preaching of peace.”

With Pipe Major Tosh MacDonald and Jedburgh Pipe Band. You can just glimpse the Choristers of Worcester College, Oxford along with the clergy and standards bearer.

On 5th June, the Spirit of Normandy Trust organised a ceremony at the statue of Viscount Montgomery. Five veterans were present, along with other VIPs including Viscount Henry Montgomery. It was moving to sing for them and to see the veterans take part in the ceremony: reading the Act of Remembrance, laying wreaths, and joining in the singing.