A Port Hope man has been living his dream for six years playing in the band of the Ceremonial Guard in Ottawa.
Twenty-seven-year-old Corporal Matthew Lyttle is an army reservist who plays tuba in the Ceremonial Guard.
The Ceremonial Guard of the Canadian Armed Forces is in its 60th season and is the most recognized military tradition in Canada which attracts thousands to Parliament Hill in Ottawa since 1959.
The Ceremonial Guard is comprised of members of the CAF Regular and Reserve forces, and is one of the many ways that the Canadian Army is guaranteeing Reservists full time summer employment during the period of May to August.
During his time with the Guard, Lyttle has played three different instruments including euphonium, bass tuba and concert tuba.
Growing up, Lyttle was involved in music from the age of nine-years-old when he first started playing piano, organ and tuba. He went on to study music at the University of Western Ontario.
Each year the Ceremonial Guard hand picks musicians from across Canada.
“You apply as a civilian on your instrument,” said Lyttle during an interview with Today’s Northumberland on Parliament Hill on Friday, July 20, 2018.
“They pick the cream of the crop. At the end of that they send you on a basic military course.” “When you come here, you come as a trained soldier and as you arrive, you pick up your instrument that you haven’t seen for a bit and play the music.”
Ceremonial Guard have a “intensive” training in May for the Parliament Hill Changing of the Guard that happens daily throughout the summer months.
“I have tons of respect for the military,” said Lyttle.
“It’s an absolutely fantastic experience. I’m very honoured and very privileged to do this. It’s not often you get to go in a location and do what you love to do.”
The pride of performing is clear when Lyttle talks about the Ceremonial Guard and parading on Parliament Hill.
“No parade for me has ever been the same. Whether that be by music selection because everyday is a new set of pieces (musical selections). Going onto the Hill it’s a new crowd, everyone is excited to be here. Every single time is like my first time.”
Wearing a bearskin cap and wood tunic as part of the uniform, sometimes the hardest part of the ceremony is standing in the sweltering heat during the hour long performance each day.
“It’s a good heavy, very dense material. It gets you quite warm.”
At this point in his career, Lyttle said he’s not nervous parading each day with throngs of people taking pictures and video, it’s more of a “nervous excitement.”
“It’s more like the engaged energy of everyone that’s around.”
A fact people visiting Parliament Hill may not be aware of is the precise timing of the march to Parliament Hill.
Step off from Cartier Square at 9:45 a.m. each day and march up to Parliament Hill and the Drum Major’s left foot hits the ground on Parliament Hill at 10 a.m. on the dot.
Lyttle has had the opportunity to play for Prime Minister’s, Ambassador’s and the Governor General.
From July 19 to 21 the Ceremonial Guard and other musical performers took part in Fortissimo 2018 will include presentations by the Dominion Carillon, the Massed Pipes and Drums of the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF), the US Army Old Guard Fife and Drum Corps, the Royal Hamilton Light Infantry (Wentworth Regiment), and the guns of the 30th Field Regiment Royal Canadian.
Fortissimo is a military concert featuring various bands and a sunset ceremony, which is open to the public and celebrated yearly.
For other photos of Fortissimo click http://nesphotos.zenfolio.com/p127574738
Author: Pete Fisher
Has been a photojournalist for over 30-years and have been honoured to win numerous awards for photography and writing over the years. Best selling author for the book Highway of Heroes - True Patriot Love
