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A Jerseyman, who works as proton therapy physicist in the NHS, has played a starring role in a quirky 'lockdown orchestra' music video with his swing band that has now gained over 60,000 views.
Victoria College alumnus Callum Gillies is the lead singer of Down for the Count, a London-based swing band that performs over 100 concerts a year and recently finished a UK tour, which this week released 'Let's Face the Music and Dance'.
But the video comes with a twist: each part was recorded by each member of the group in isolation, with each donning their finest attire to sing, dance and play from living rooms, kitchens and bathrooms in tribute to NHS staff.
Pictured: The video was watched more than 26,000 times in the first 24 hours after its release.
It has since generated hundreds of likes and shares, and been viewed more than 60,000 times.
Express caught up with lead singer Callum...
Born and raised in Jersey, Callum attended St. Mary’s Primary School and Victoria College, where he was head boy, before heading off to university to study Medical Physics.
With a “very musical family” - his dad is a singer and his mum a dancer - Callum says he was very tempted to enter the world of entertainment as a career.
Although his parents supported his musical endeavours, they also encouraged Callum to get a degree and keep the music “as something fun on the side".
Having followed their advice, Callum now works at University College Hospital for the NHS as a proton therapy physicist.
“We’re commissioning the new facility for proton beam therapy in London which is a very exciting project!” Callum explained. “We’re managing to work from home at the moment and continue with a lot of aspects of the preparation.”
But music is still a big part of Callum’s life. When his dad comes to visit in London, they sometimes get a chance to sing together, at the Hideaway Jazz Club in Streatham, or Ronnie Scott’s in London, where they were supposed to play this Easter Sunday.
Pictured: Callum (left) joined 'Down for the Count' in 2013.
During his time at University College London, Callum was heavily involved in the jazz society and musical theatre society and that’s where he met, Mike Paul-Smith and Max Fagandini, Down for the Count’s musical director and trumpetist.
The band, which was created in 2005, was looking for a male vocalist at the time, so Mike and Max asked Callum if he fancied a try-out. Having finished university and spent a year singing far less than he used to, Callum was missing it.
“It was the perfect opportunity at just the right time!" Callum recalled. “At my first gig, it was me and another female vocalist and I’d prepped enough of their repertoire to do my fair share."
“Unfortunately, the female vocalist got a sore throat and was unable to sing a lot of her numbers, so I had to fill in for her numbers – Respect and Lady Marmalade were interesting, to say the least.”
Pictured: Callum works at University College Hospital for the NHS as a proton therapy physicist.
With lockdown enforced all over the UK, Callum and his fellow band members, like many other musicians, have found themselves having to play at home, far from audiences.
But they haven’t let the situation dampen their spirits and instead keep practising, trying to keep people entertained any way they can.
In a bid to spread a positive message and raise funds for NHS Charities Together, Mike and Sophie Poteratchi, leader of the City String Ensemble, came up with the idea of the ‘Orchestra in Lockdown’ video.
“We're all in awe of what our key workers are doing at the moment, particularly our NHS staff, and we wanted to do something to show our appreciation of them,” Mike explained.
Pictured: Each musician recorded their part from home.
“It’s so inspiring how healthcare workers carry on doing such a difficult job day after day, and we thought that the song ‘Let's Face the Music and Dance’ epitomises that attitude perfectly.
“Also, music and dance have the ability to lift people’s spirits. This is such a difficult time for everyone – including for us as musicians, unsure when we’re going to be able to play together again – so we wanted to do something positive to bring a little joy into people’s lives.”
Mike transcribed the orchestral parts from the original Billy May arrangement, written for Nat ‘King’ Cole in the early 1960s, and sent them round to all the musicians – including an NHS doctor from Edinburgh - who each recorded their separate parts from home.
Mike then mixed all the audio while Sophie edited over four hours of footage to create the three-minute video over the course of one week.
Pictured: Callum can be seen tap dancing in the video.
“The only instruction was ‘put on your concert dress and have fun’– everyone dusted down their tuxedos and ballgowns, propped up their phone on piles of books, and imagined they were at a concert,” Mike said.
“Everyone had their own little individual take on the “have fun” message and it was great to see what everyone came up - especially when they had bars of rest – everything from quickstepping around the living room to cooking cauliflower soup!”
“It’s amazing how all this could be achieved from the comfort of our own homes in keeping with the Stay Home guidelines,” Mike added. “We wanted to demonstrate how you can still achieve something and collaborate with others without having to leave your home, all the while helping to protect the NHS and raising money for NHS Charities Together. We’re incredibly proud of it and have been thrilled by the reaction!”
With over 26,000 views in the first 24 hours after its release, Down for the Count has been amazed by the reception.
“To say over the moon is putting it lightly – we really weren’t expecting it to take off like this," Callum said. “It’s been so lovely everyone sharing it and enjoying what was a lot of (fun) hard work to put together!"
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