The Jeppe Pipe Band has been invited to perform at the world famous Basel Tattoo in Switzerland.
This will be Jeppe’s second time at the event.
The band attended the event two years ago and was invited back this year.
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Damien Pitman, the master in charge, said the group is thrilled to be invited back to the show.
“We accepted the invitation in June last year and now we are faced with the task of raising half a million rand to fund this trip.
“We get no direct funding from the school and we want the parents to pay as little as possible so the band members have been working very hard,” said Pitman.
He said the band has been performing at corporate functions and even weddings to raise the necessary funds.
Pitman said this time around there is a little more pressure to raise the money because the Basel Tattoo will take place in July.
“Last time we had two years to raise funds. This time around it was different but we were happy to accept the invite because it will afford our new 16 band members the chance to experience the show,” said Pitman.
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He said the pipe band has been practising hard and members are committed. The group learned 20 songs for the show.
“We have 16 old members and 16 new members, so we need to ensure we all know all the songs. We cannot afford mistakes.”
“We know we cannot expect handouts. If we want to go to Basel, we need to ensure we make it happen,” said Pitman.
Basel Tattoo boasts acts from 12 countries and pipe bands are just one section.
“We appreciate everyone who has been supporting us,” said Pitman.
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To raise funds, a raffle is being held which closed at the end of February.
An overseas holiday valued at R35 000 is up for grabs.
Anyone interested in raffle tickets or in contributing to the fund-raising efforts can email Pitman at dpitman@jeppeboys.co.za
