Memorial Day always special for NZSO Trumpeter

NZSO Trumpeter Cheryl Hollinger first played her trumpet at a Memorial Day service in a school band in her hometown of Lititz, Pennsylvania (USA).    

The parade route finishes at the Moravian Cemetery where the town has its service and at the end of every ceremony, Cheryl was chosen by the band director to play Taps just as she does in New Zealand. 

In Lititz the graves of veterans buried in the cemetery are marked with small American flags and Cheryl remembers being “amazed” when she first saw the grave of a soldier who fought in the Revolutionary War. She’s still “in awe of what it represents. 

Cheryl has been a stalwart of Kapiti Memorial Day and has turned out for all but one of our recent services at the U.S.Marines Memorial in Queen Elizabeth Park. 

She says she always looks forward to playing at the service. “Being a dual citizen of the United States and of New Zealand, it is very meaningful for me to pay tribute to the United States Marines and the New Zealand soldiers who fought alongside each other in WW II. 

I feel particularly emotional when I play TAPS while the United States flag is being raised.  It is wonderful to hear the children’s chorus and to listen to the heartfelt speeches.

“I’d love to think that the descendants of all those US Marines based here could know that we still remember and honour them in New Zealand all these decades later,” she says.   

Cheryl has been associate principal trumpet of the NZSO since moving to New Zealand in 2000. She has a Bachelor of Science in music education from West Chester University and Bachelor of Music and Master of Music degrees from The Juilliard School in New York City.  

Before joining the NZSO, she was a member of the Savannah Symphony, The Florida Orchestra, and the Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra in New Orleans where she held the position of Principal Trumpet and soloist for seven seasons.