Youth Band Islands Tour

On Friday 11 April, the Kiwi contingent of The Salvation Army Youth Band embarked on a 10-day tour of Fiji, Tonga and Samoa. Jules Badger spoke with Noah Spargo and Jonty Zydenbos who shared their reflections on what was a life-changing experience for members of the group.

The group of 42 who travelled to the islands included musicians, techies and roadies, media specialists, a health and wellbeing support team, as well as the Youth Band executive officers. The youngest musician was 17, with representatives from Whangārei in the north to Dunedin in the south.

‘For the large majority of the group, this was their first time travelling out of New Zealand, so to experience worship in another culture was particularly impactful. This tour was truly a partnership between music and mission,’ says Noah. ‘I’ve never experienced anything quite like it before.’

Equally blessed

The Youth Band’s mission is to entertain, encourage and evangelise, and while these three facets of intention were very well exercised by the band during the tour, they were also embodied by Fijian, Tongan and Samoan Salvationists in return.

‘We went with a mission, but we were equally blessed,’ says Noah. ‘When we met and played with people, it really was with people. Music was the connecting tool for relationships, and God existing in the midst of those moments was the real highlight. It was working with the people of the three Pacific nations that blessed so many of us.’

Noah explains that there were two main reasons for the trip—both of equal weight and importance. The first was
to contribute positively to the local mission of The Salvation Army in Fiji, Tonga and Samoa.

‘That was particularly powerful when the band became a tool for helping to build and strengthen connections between the local Salvation Army and other organisations,’ says Noah. ‘In Samoa, we played at the prison and at the university, and being able to offer our talents and gifts in this way was a real highlight for all of us.’

The second reason for the tour was to reignite a passion for the band to truly be a territorial band—comprised of members from all four nations.

Connection restored

Before Covid-19, The Salvation Army New Zealand, Fiji, Tonga and Samoa Youth Band included musicians from across the territory. However, with international travel restrictions, the Youth Band’s momentum took a big hit.

‘The connection with the islands that used to be quite strong was lost. We wanted to restore that connection and encourage the rest of the territory to once again be part of the Youth Band,’ explains Noah. ‘And not just for membership now, but also to inspire future members.’

For the first five days of the tour the band split into two groups, with one half spending time in Tonga and the other half in Samoa. The band came together in Fiji for the remaining five days of the tour.

Jonty has been a member of the band for nearly 10 years and was so thrilled to see past members of the band again.

‘I loved seeing what they’d taken from their experience of being in the Youth Band and how they’d applied that learning back in their local corps. In Tonga, we went to Vaini Corps and an ex-member of the Territorial Youth Band had decided to start a corps Youth Band there. They had about 20 members, and even the conductor of the band was one of the youth!’

Spiritual highlights

Noah and Jonty agree that their time at Nasinu Corps over Easter was especially significant for members of the band.

‘We performed a concert on Friday night, and then the corps put on an Easter production for us! For a lot of the members in the band this was a spiritual highlight because there were moments of new revelation from God during the production. It was really impactful,’ explains Noah.

Another highlight was the final concert in Suva near the end of the tour. The group were ‘pretty shattered’ and Jonty was worried about how it would go.

‘We gathered out the back for some prayer together, and all of a sudden, while we were praying the Fijian audience just began singing. And that moment for me—I just felt the Spirit of God flood the building right there and then! The power and presence of God was real and the motivation within the group soared! It was the best concert I’ve been part of, and to sort of top it all off, afterwards we got together and spent time in prayer and fellowship thanking God! I’m going to cherish and reminisce over that for years!’

For many of the band members, it was the experience of making new friends and deepening connections that they will remember most.

‘The perfect way to top off the entire trip was a huge feast at Nasinu Corps,’ explains Noah. ‘To our surprise, they had pulled together a band of their own young people from the Suva area! We danced together and sang together and shared food together. Everyone started trading instruments, so we were all playing together! Fijians were pulling us into dance circles and starting long conga lines. It was a truly joyful representation of what the entire trip felt like for a lot of the band.’