The Association for ex- and serving members, plus friends of the RAF Music Services.
The RAF Music Services Association (MuSA) dates back to a dinner held to mark the retirement of Wing Commander Roy Davies in 1987. This Central Band event was extended to include ex-members, and at the end of a very successful evening there was a general agreement that it should be repeated on a regular basis. Similar events were organised by some of the regional bands, but despite the enthusiastic response to regional get-togethers, there was no systematic attempt to organise anything nationally.
Then the publication of Music In The Air provided an opportunity to accelerate the project. Articles in various magazines and papers, and an interview on national radio publicised the launch and invited all ex-RAF musicians to attend a national re-union.. Advertisements were placed in music and trade magazines, and letters in response started arriving at HQMS. The re-umion took place on the 10th April 1986 with many well-known, even famous names present, and it was announced that it was now official policy to establish an old comrades association.
An official project in the RAF requires a Project Officer, and now that his book was safely published, Squadron Leader Ian Kendrick agreed to take this secondary duty and organise the new Association, starting with the formation of a committee. Warrant Officer Fred Thomson had established a register of ex-members, and so became a founder member of the committee. All other seats were filled by serving musicians, which was necessary at this stage because of the requirement to work within service regulations. By the end of the year, rules and regulations had been circulated, membership fees were starting to arrive at HQMS, and the first Association reunion with AGM was being planned. One by one, the numerous points of detail were debated and decided - emblem, ties, membership cards, patron, area reps, and, of course, a magazine. This last problem was solved by finding a company whose income was generated by selling advertising space. They would supply a professionally-produced colour magazine for no charge in return for the Association distributing a minimum number of copies.
The magazine started production with the title, The Blue And The Gold.
Gradually, the serving committee members were replaced by ex-members and the Association is now entirely run by retired musicians. Association members receive copies of the magazine twice each year and all have the chance to attend the annual re-union which most often has been held at RAF Uxbridge. This is always an enjoyable weekend as old friends meet again. There are two concerts to enjoy – on by one of the established bands (usually the Central Band), and another by the veterans themselves – the legendary “Vet’s Blow.”
The Association now has its own official march – The Blue And The Gold. This is one of a trio of marches which was composed in 2008 by Frederick Jameson, who served first with the Regiment Band and then with No 4 Regional Band.
If you are interested in joining the Association please contact John Dablin, the Membership Secretary, at jdablin@ntlworld.com
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