By Philip Cohen
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It was the time of military service. If they called us and we were musicians, we had the opportunity to join one of the few charangas in chivalry from France, that of the 501 RCC.
The 75th and 93rd regiments play together
Directed by the unforgettable Mayor André Souplet, this charanga dissolved with the departure of the 501 of Rambouillet (Yvelines) in 1994.
Recently, hundreds of people, including gerard larcherhad the impression of going back 30 years, with the return of the elders of the famous fanfare.
“Oh, the marching band was awesome when it went under the Hardy Bridge during the Lily of the Valley festival, then we saw it on TV on July 14! The 501 was Rambouillet”
They are dazzled by the resurrection of this military orchestra that was part of Rambolitan life from 1946 to 1994.
“It gives you goosebumps and it’s magical at the same time. You realize, there are several regiments, the oldest from 1975 and those from 1993 that have just played together”, Thierry Bergeot, the director, confesses excitedly. Trumpet of honor in 1994, he played the last piece in front of the castle of Rambouillet before the dissolution. Patrick Deprez is the dean, he was in the marching band 46 years ago:
“It is a return to our youth. We find our gestures, our sensations. We realize how lucky we were to join the band. »
marked for life
“We were often recruited by Major Souplet who wrote scores played by France’s military drummers,” recalls trumpeter Laurent Bevin, who continued the music into a jazz big bang.
Called up from Brittany in 1986, he recalled the “lost friends of the regiment” while playing this weekend. Everyone wanted to pay tribute in particular to Major Souplet, who made the band famous from 1972:
In Jacques Martin and Mourousi in the 80s
“It was one of the rare cavalry brass bands equivalent to that of the Republican Guard”, emphasizes the musician Olivier Lefrançois. He performed at military festivals and even on television sets, in Le Monde est à vous de Jacques Martin or in broadcastsyves mourousi.
Storm Desert and the Cocardière
Coming from the four corners of France, the former soldiers have rediscovered their spirit of camaraderie of yesteryear around songs like Désert Storm or La Cocardière. They remembered the days shared between music, tank maintenance, maneuvers on the Marne and shooting tests on the Poigny field.
“I met my wife thanks to 501! »
Some went to their region, others like the Breton Christian Lemee made their life in Rambouillet: “I met my wife there at the end of my service. I was a butcher for 32 years in the Rambouillet market”, confesses the one who studied in 1968. He returned with his trumpet offered by the brass band in 1970. “It was a school where you acquired music and personality. And in Rambouillet they always looked forward to us at all the parades! »
An adventure that is not going to stop today with the reconstitution of the charanga.
“They ask us for concerts! », Confesses Thierry Bergeot, the one-man band of the formation.
The council hopes to bring them back, why not during the next Lily of the Valley festival.
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