Thierry Deleruyelle's 'Fraternity' may recall unimaginable destructive loss — but it is also a work filled with a sense of dignified hope communal: The capriciously destructive influence of both man and nature has always been the omnipotent ultimately horrific accompaniment to the extraction of coal from deep beneath the surface of the earth.  The lingering effects still resonate around the world today; from distant memories of individual family bereavement to the names of villages whose timeless identity will forever be associated with unimaginable mourning; Senghenydd in Wales  It is a long and stark statistical obituary Thousands upon thousands have been killed - including the 116 children and 28 adults submerged by the wave of colliery mining waste that engulfed Pantglas Junior School in Aberfan on the morning of 21st October 1966.  It is not the romantic notion displayed by sunken pit wheels painted coal trams and shiny brass gift shop miner’s lamps that recall the story of the true of cost of mining coal - but the cold rows of bleached headstones that fill graveyards in proud communities across the globe.   It is that reality that informs Thierry Deleuyelle’s outstanding composition ‘Fraternity’ - an intensely thoughtful work that recalls one such horrific disaster; that of Courrieres near Lens in Northern France in 1906 when 1099 miners were killed by an explosion of coal dust It remains the second largest loss of life in the history of the industry.  There is personal connection for the composer – his paternal grandfather was a miner from the age of 12 in the type of pits that formed the focal point of villages such as Mericourt Billy-Montigny and Noyelles-sous-Lens that were to be denuded of a generation of proud husbands Written as the set-work for the 2016 European Brass Band Championships in Lille the timeline of a single catastrophic day and its immediate aftermath.  it is also a powerful exploration of the binding sense of fraternal identification that led miners from as far afield as Belgium and Germany to come to offer assistance in the task of both rescuing survivors and in bringing out the dead.  Seven linked sections form the narrative chapters of the 10th March 1906; opening with the dawn rituals of personal preparation and the unworldly icy mystery of the men’s trek to work as the imposing triangular edifice of the colliery tower slowly emerges from the damp mist of the early morning.  The layered music unfolds with a deliberate sense of tension and unease – revealing the palpable sense of foreboding of what fate is soon to bestow upon them the tubas the shadow figures of colleagues heading to their collective destination Into the gullet of the shaft the miners drop like stones to the pit floor – some 340 meters below the surface; the simple cornet solo increasing in intensity and extremis as the cage finally hits pit bottom; a fraternal dialogue between the baritone and horn leading the men to the coal face Here they arrive at the truly unromantic heart of industrialised mining life - and the hours of laborious rhythmic extraction of coal amid hellish conditions; picks hammers and shovels working in a unified cause.  The deliberate low pitched passagalian foundation that pulsates with intensity is matched by the mechanical sounds of the percussion and the busy interjections of the higher brass as the coal is ripped There are hints of unimaginable forces though – touches of Paul Dukas and ‘The Sorcerer’s Apprentice’ as the miners burrow with increasing ferocity  The music here is full of controlled detail purpose and precision – yet still one false move away from disaster It comes; a ripping ferocity of explosive slaughter that blasts its way through the tunnels and walkways obliterating humanity in its wake – the heated percussion forcing the music forward before the bubbling semi-quaver undercurrents of gas bring chaotic mayhem The music has a chilling inhumanity; stabbing fissures emerging from almost nowhere to suck air from lungs small elemental motifs and fleeing semi-quaver runs signalling life or death throughout the ensemble as panic sets in.  the force loses its destructive energy and ebbs to a funereal close  A deathly tuba chord heralds the task of bringing out the dead; the timpani motif evoking the same early morning ritual of preparation and journey – although this time the anticipation is filled with an overwhelming feeling of loss Above ground the realisation of what has occurred is heralded by the simple paean of grief from the solo cornet - a prayer joined in melancholic recitation by an ever increasing ensemble Saturday 10 May • Winter Gardens Complex May 5 • Ocean Brass are inviting applications for our Principal Cornet position as we prepare for an exciting schedule of concerts and contests in the second section through 2025 and beyond May 4 • Following a successful start to our 2025 contest season Rode Hall Band are looking for a good FRONT ROW CORNET player to join this enthusiastic friendly and progressive 3rd section band based on the Cheshire/Staffordshire border Rode Hall Band are looking for a good SOPRANO CORNET player to join this enthusiastic Journalist Marc Mechenoua of Goal France reports this afternoon that both Aston Vill and Atalanta are keeping tabs on Lens midfielder Cheick Doucouré with both clubs reaching out to the young Mali international’s entourage Lens are yet to receive an offer thus far for the 21-year-old midfielder Doucouré made 34 appearances in the top flight for the Sang et Or with the aforementioned clubs already presenting their respective projects to the player Vous utilisez un ancien navigateur. 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Mettez à jour votre navigateur pour améliorer votre expérience With pit closures and the gradual disappearance of mining operators Various legislative measures provide that the State shall stand surety for damage caused by the operator’s activity when this latter is not in a position to do so or is no longer in existence and place under State care the installations and equipment needed for prevention and safety Preserving skills and transmitting knowledge in the mining professions are other essential stakes in the post-mine era mapping sites and monitoring derelict mining zones create the need to perpetuate and add to existing technical literature After the intensive mining activity that once was one of the pillars of its industrial might France today has instituted a legislative framework an organization and means to accompany an inevitable mutation and to allow the mining adventure to continue to occupy its rightful place in our social The State has important responsibilities in the post-mining field which are exercised through an organisational structure covering all social The functions within the remit of the State are exercised by the competent central authority (Ministry for Ecology) and the relevant decentralised authorities (DREAL)  Expert assessment and research functions are exercised respectively by the GEODERIS public interest group and the GISOS scientific interest group A government decree issued on 4 April 2006 attributed all operational functions to BRGM which established a dedicated department for this purpose the Mine Safety and Risk Prevention Department (DPSM) BRGM has a specific department to run its post-mining activities. BRGM’s responsibilities for mine safety are carried out through its 4 regional post-mining units BRGM has managed surveillance and risk prevention activities to ensure the safety of decommissioned mining sites on behalf of the State The goal is to ensure the safety of people and property in former mining areas Understanding the phenomena at work and mapping characterising and monitoring former mining sites all rely on conserving enriching and updating existing technical documentation BRGM manages the post-mining information system particularly the collections of intermediate technical mining archives Preserving know-how on mining through knowledge transmission is another crucial post-mining issue The State’s responsibilities in the field of post-mining are delegated to several organisations: the ministry for Ecology and the DREAL (regional offices for the environment planning and housing) for governance functions Research and expert studies are handled respectively by the Gisos scientific interest group (research) and the Geoderis public interest group (expert studies) BRGM works through Gisos (scientific interest group on impacts and safety of subterranean engineering works) Ineris (French national institute for the industrial environment and risks) INPL (Lorraine national polytechnic institute) and Mines ParisTech Gisos research focuses on three priority areas: analyse and model the phenomena at work in order to predict and prevent negative technical BRGM contributes to the research conducted through Gisos by: BRGM’s expert study activities are conducted through the Geoderis group Geoderis is a Public Interest Group (GIP) established by and comprising BRGM and Ineris It provides expert knowledge and technical assistance for post-mining work to the State (central and devolved administrative departments particularly the DREAL) and to local and regional government authorities Subscribe to our newsletter and receive our news every month As reported by Goal France and France Bleu Lens’ Malian midfielder Cheick Doucouré is attracting interest from England and Germany ahead of the summer transfer window Wolfsburg and Crystal Palace are leading the race for the 22-year-old holding midfielder and are in contact with the player’s agents but Lens are yet to receive any concrete offers for the player whose deal runs to 2024 Doucouré has enjoyed an impressive couple of seasons in Ligue 1 since Lens were promoted back to the top flight in 2020 and has already played 126 senior games for the club since joining in 2018 L’Équipe report that work permit issues have been holding up the €27.6m transfer of Malian international defensive midfielder Cheick Doucouré to Premier League side Crystal Palace from Ligue 1 outfit RC Lens During Lens’ 2nd pre-season match on Friday RCL midfielder Seko Fofana paid homage to Doucouré Crystal Palace will pay €22.6m as a base fee with up to €5m in bonuses included in the agreement Fofana had the following to say post-Lens’ friendly match vs Valenciennes: I wish him nothing but the best for what’s next I believe he is one of the best players or the best player that I have ever played with.” Doucouré has been waiting for a work permit and arrived in London on Friday – he has been given a provisional permit and is waiting for the formal work permit which should arrive on Monday His departure from Lens was unavoidable – Nottingham Forest also made bids to sign the player Lens will give 30% of the transfer to the Jean-Marc Guillou academy in Abidjan where the player arrived in North of France from in 2018 Nottingham Forest attempted to include Doucouré in the Brice Samba transaction