The Last Post

This is a piece of music I've played since I was 11 years old. One holiday in Cornwall, I convinced my parents to buy me a second hand bugle in a second hand shop - it cost them a grand sum of £12. I wouldn't give its first performance until I joined my secondary school, and I would play it for the following seven years, every Remembrance service in our local church and in the school hall with the entire school present. I remember there were a few veterans that would attend the church services, and one would read out 'For The Fallen'. Each year after the commemoration ended, they'd come up to me and give their thanks to me, something that as the years go by, becomes more and more poignant. After I left school and began my university degree, I returned to come back to the school church where I'd always played, to give one more performance, as I felt that this was where I belonged, at that specific moment in time each year. We were told by the shop owner that it's likely the bugle was used in WW1. It's heavily battered and when it was washed for the first time in who knows how long, small amounts of debris started flowing out the bell. Who knows who/how many people played this bugle before me. I always find this piece haunting, yet beautiful - looking at it from a musicians perspective, it only has five notes, and can be played with little to no dynamic variation, and if performed with speed, can be finished in roughly a minute. However, my teacher Eddie Maxwell, strived for me to bring out every ounce of emotion and energy into this piece and ever since, I've always honoured his arrangement ideas and try to make every note and every subtlety accounted for. To our western music upbringing, the bugle is 'out of tune' and most notes are not aligned with the harmonic series. I find this brings an extra haunting quality to it, because it creates a sense of unease and unrest - a natural fit given the subject matter. Not only is the sound haunting, but knowing this instrument has been played before me, and it being potentially 100+ years old makes it all the more special for me. To me, this piece is a timeless creation, there's endless room for interpretation, and its ability to transport the listener into a powerful and thoughtful silence is unparalleled. Playing The Last Post year upon year "shall grow not old". My links: Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/artist/4o7rOtAAYgrNOZrnxG8t9g?si=AUxwoEteSFyL3wQ-KTsuEQ Patreon - https://www.patreon.com/user?u=75000138 Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/oliparker_music TikTok - https://www.tiktok.com/@oliparker_music Use code 'oli10' for 10% off all instruments or 'oli15' for 15% off all accessories at www.kgumusic.com Use code 'oli10' for 10% off all MG Leather Work gig bags and accessories at https://mgleatherwork.com/collections/trumpet-accessories