Scrap Iron Flotilla Theme

The quick march, 'The Scrap Iron Flotilla', was composed by Leading Seaman Musician Martyn Hancock as a salute the men and ships of this famous WWII Flotilla. The video was recorded during a rehearsal in the band studio in Sydney on 19 March 2010 with the Director of Music, Commander Phillip Anderson, conducting. 'Scrap Iron Flotilla' has been composed to pay tribute to the five Australian destroyers that served in the Mediterranean during World War II: HMAS Stuart, HMAS Voyager, HMAS Vampire, HMAS Vendetta and HMAS Waterhen. Built at the end of the First World War, these already old and outdated ships soon earned their name after being ridiculed by the NAZI Propaganda Minister Goebbels as a consignment of junk and Australia's Scrap Iron Flotilla. However, the ships had been built extremely well by the expertise of those working on the Clyde at that time. In addition, the crews that manned the ships were renowned for their cheerfulness, courage, optimism and pride. They fought for two years and proved to be highly successful, earning them a very distinguished battle history. The march portrays the story of the Scrap Iron Flotilla. After an introduction in the style of the opening theme music to the BBC television series Warship, a Scottish feel is adopted depicting the ships being built on the Clyde. This is followed by a contrasting bold and jovial section to represent the crew, and hints of the Sailors Hornpipe and Any Old Iron can be heard. The opening material returns again but this time with much dissonance and tension to reflect on the Flotilla's involvement in the war. A boatswains call is also used here prior to the proud and majestic Elgar-like Trio section in honour of the Scrap Iron Flotilla's successes. A bridge passage is then played, which incorporates the use of scrap iron (or anvil) in the percussion section, and in the typical style of a military quick march, the Trio is then repeated but on a grander scale. Countermelodies based on the Naval Hymn; Eternal Father; and the Official March of the Royal Australian Navy, titled 'Royal Australian Navy', can be heard in the trombones and upper woodwinds respectively. Coincidentally, the composer, Leading Seaman Martyn Hancock, has a strong family history from Greenock, on the banks of the river Clyde in Scotland. His great-grandfather and several other relatives were shipbuilders at the Clyde Shipyards during the time that the ships of the Scrap Iron Flotilla were built there.