On Sunday 30 July, we played wonderfully at the Peace Tipi Tent Camp in Breda on the Chassé Park behind the Stadsgalerij…. With our teaching group Roermond, we sometimes take an opportunity to ‘perform’ again. Well it’s more ‘playing in public’ this time. There was not much of an audience, but you still show yourself to others and that gives something extra. It is an event that on the one hand commemorates the Peace of Breda (concluded 350 years ago) and on the other calls attention to Peace today. The aim of the project, which consists of seven tepees by artist, Ben Acket, is precisely “a week of talking, listening and meditating about and for peace”. A fire of peace is also burning all the while.

‘The Treaty of Breda, concluded on 31 July 1667 in the Great Hall of the Castle in the Brabant city of Breda, was the treaty between the Republic of the Seven United Netherlands, England, France and Denmark that ended the Second Anglo-Dutch War.

Prior to this, Michiel de Ruyter made his famous Voyage to Chatham, which favoured the terms of the treaty for the Republic.

It was agreed that Dutch New Amsterdam (later New York) was officially ceded to the English. The Republic retained Suriname, which had been captured shortly before the Peace. The Windward Islands also remained with the Republic, as did the Moluccan island of Run and a number of forts on the coast of West Africa. These forts were needed for the slave trade. English Shipping Laws were also loosened‘

We came with some people from the Roermond teaching group supplemented by Celinda and Juliette. We played in a beautiful blue Tipi and had occasional visitors in the tent. Sometimes people played along on Bara or Didgeridoo (video below). It was not super spacious inside but cosy. A meditation group in one of the other tipis were also guided by the sounds of balafon, flute and didgeridoo. a lovely afternoon in this Peace Tipi Tent Camp!