STRONG TO SAVE

Strong to Save was commissioned by Bandmaster Ken Waterworth and the Melbourne Staff Band (MSB) and received its first performance on June 30, 2012 at the Canberra Girls’ Grammar School (Canberra, Australia). The concert performance was part of a commemoration weekend held to mark the 70th anniversary of the sinking of the Japanese naval ship ‘Montevideo Maru’ which claimed the lives of over 1,000 Australian military personnel, among them 16 Australian Salvation Army bandsmen.

Band and drums of the 2/22nd Battalion Band (B/M Arthur Gullidge), AIF taken at Trawool (Australia) camp, 1940 prior to departing for Rabaul, Papua New Guinea

These bandsmen were members of the 2/22nd Battalion Band and the Bandmaster was Arthur Gullidge, much of whose music (published by The Salvation Army) will be familiar to many. Roger’s grandfather, Wilfred Trigg was also a member and Deputy Bandmaster of the band. The weekend’s events in Canberra also included the unveiling of a permanent memorial to those who perished. It was a privilege for Roger to be asked to write music to mark this occasion and as such, the composition carries special significance.

The core of the music is a three verse arrangement of the hymn tune Melita to which the words by William Whiting, ‘Eternal Father, strong to save…’ are sung. It is known by many names, variously referred to as the Hymn of Her Majesty’s Armed Forces, the Royal Navy Hymn, the United States Navy Hymn (or just The Navy Hymn), and sometimes by the last line of its first verse, “For Those in Peril on the Sea”. The music is well-suited for use in an ANZAC, Remembrance or Veteran’s Day service.