Prague:

In September 1998, 46 members of the choir, plus assorted partners, spouses and friends, travelled to Prague. We sang first in Mariensky, better known as Marienbad. Our second concert was at the Church of St. Nicholas in the charming Old Town Square in central Prague. The chandelier in the middle of the cathedral had been a gift from the Czar, during the period when the church was Russian Orthodox. We performed eleven numbers, mostly by English composers.

Cracow:

In July 2000 the choir travelled to Cracow in Poland. Once Poland's capital, the old city contains beautifully preserved medieval and renaissance buldings. UNESCO has designated this area as one of the Twelve Most Precious World Monuments.

The choir tour lasted for four days, and some members then moved on to a walking tour in the Tatra mountains after the concerts.

Budapest:

In August 2002 the choir performed two concerts in Hungary's two most famous churches: the Basilica Esztergom and the Matyas Templom in Budapest. Several members then proceeded to Eger for mountain walking and other less strenuous forms of acculturation.

Venice:

In September 2004 the choir went to Padua and Venice. We sang works by Bach, Brahms, Bruckner, Elgar, Mozart, Fauré, Handel, Howells and Parry as well as works by Venetian composers and organ pieces for Nicholas Danks. The concerts were performed in SS Redentore on Giudecca and San Francesco in Padua.

In September 2006 the choir took off on one of its biannual tours - this time to the Baltic States starting in Helsinki in Finland and then on to Tallinn in Estonia. There were over 90 of us of which 65 were singers. The highlights of the visit to Helsinki were a visit to Sibelius's house (just as the family left it - absolutely fascinating!) and the Rock Church. We sang in the beautiful and impressive Lutheran Cathedral - the pogramme included  
Requiem (Fauré), Zadok the Priest (Handel), Ave Verum (Mozart), Kyrie in D Minor (K341) (Mozart), There is an Old Belief (Parry), Littlemore Tractus (Arvo Pärt), 5 Negro Spirituals (Tippett) and the Organ Piece were Trumpet Voluntary (Boyce), Prelude on “Rhosymedre” (Ralph Vaughan Williams) and Fanfare (Kenneth Leighton)

From Helsinki we went on to Tallinn where we basked in glorious sunshine and enjoyed the stunning architecture. We performed the same pieces in the Cathedral as we had in Helsinki, and on the last night we had a very successful dinner for the whole party.

Sarah Streatfeild (Chairman)

For further pictures of the 2006 tour click here