The thundering of drums and the shrill of fifes will be prominent sounds locally during the weekend of September 19 and 20 and Monday, September 21 as the Towpath Volunteers Fife and Drum Corps hosts the 2015 World Fife and Drum Friendship Festival in Macedon and Palmyra.
Towpath member Debbie Willson says the one-time event will be world class as corps from Italy, France, Belgium and the USA will be participating.
“We wanted to share our country with them,” she says and explains the Towpath Volunteers were invited in 2011 to go to France and perform with corps located there. “On a whim we went,” Willson remembers, and since that time members of the Towpath Volunteers have returned again and again.
“We have made friends in France, Italy, Belgium and Switzerland,” Willson says. “In Italy, we play at a carnival that dates back to Medieval times. The people are so generous, friendly and warm. We want to share our music, culture and history with them like they did with us.”
All events are free and open to the public. On Saturday, September 19, all participating groups will be playing throughout the day at various locations during Canal Town Days in Palmyra. Opening Ceremonies are set for 10 a.m. The Canal Town Days parade is at 4 p.m. on September 19.
On Sunday, September 20, the corps will march in the “Take Pride in America” parade at noon on Main Street in Macedon. At 4 p.m. on Sunday, a concert is planned at Long Acres Farm on Eddy Road in Macedon. Willson says to bring your own seating for the event.
The concert gives the groups an opportunity to play together, Willson says. The concert includes a special musical selection. “We will play one song from each country in a medley,” she says. “We want people to come out and see what we do. This is going to be the biggest thing to hit Macedon in a long time.”
The Festival continues Monday, September 21 with a concert at 11 a.m. at Old Fort Niagara in Youngstown, Willson says. The concert is free, but there is admission to the Fort.
Towpath Volunteers Fife and Drum Corps have been bringing “Our American Heritage” to life since 1978, Willson says. The group marches in 30-50 parades each year and has performed for U.S. Presidents, marched in the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, the Gasparilla parade in Florida, the St. Patrick’s Day Parade in Savannah, Georgia and three times at Disney World. In addition to wearing colonial-style uniforms, the group utilizes handmade wooden fifes and rope tension deep snare and bass drums like those used by the country’s founding fathers.
On Friday, September 18, the corps will visit local schools and the VA hospital in Canandaigua.
