There were emotional scenes as Mike Pennicotte-Henrie conducted his final concert in charge of Liss Band on Saturday evening.
Several of his personal selections were on the programme for a well attended concert at Petersfield Festival Hall.
The evening concluded with a joint performance – Mike conducted the first verse of the final piece of music, then handed the baton o
ver to Michael Charles, who will succeed him as conductor. “It was a very emotional occasion,” said band chairman Ashley Kemp. She presented him with a hand crafted wooden baton mounted on a stand, and also presented a bouquet of flowers to his wife Kay before making a speech thanking him for his 13 years as conductor.
He will continue to be a member of the band, playing in the trombone section.
The concert included a light hearted interlude when three of the trombone players donned nuns’ habits for the performance of I Will Follow Him – a hymn which features in the film Sister Act, in which Whoopi Goldberg plays a nun.
Solo performances during the evening included Steve Kemp on cornet and Hannah Platt on euphonium.
The band’s next performance will be Saturday, July 14, at a steam rally and fete at the Spread Eagle, West Liss.
See the band’s website at www.liss.band.co.uk for more details.
