St. Albans: Day 3

Another cloudy day. I drove into town and this time found the car park without any difficulty. Plenty of parking space, and cheap as well. Moreover, the money raised by the students goes to charity. Better than giving it to the local council.

I thought the singing went well, but the conductor became more and more frustrated by our singing and so we rehearsed till we all lost concentration because we were so tired. A break for a walk in the park or an afternoon nap might have worked better. The service went well, I think. At least, I had no problems and enjoyed it.

The Market Tower

During the day we also rehearse music for other days. We work on the Gibbons and the Schütz every day. They are not exactly easy pieces, as the voices are divided and we do not have many singers, just 18, cantores and decani together. So everyone should know his or her part well. Apart from hitting the right note, it is a matter of constantly counting and not losing track.  Unfortunately there are quite a few changes among the singers midweek, some come, some go home. It doesn't seem wise to select music which isn't well established in the repertoire. So instead of having a day off tomorrow, which everybody was looking forward to, we have an extra rehearsal with the viols midday. Personally I do not particularly crave to go to London, but some singers who have brought their families as well, had planned on a family outing to the metropolis. Quite disappointing!

The Gibbons has solo parts. I will be singing the alto ones together with another alto. I had no choice in the matter, the only choice being singing it alone. Anyway, two is better than one, and we produce a nice blend.

Today was market day in St. Albans. The market was very big, with not just a farmers market, but all sorts of things, even parquet floors, bedding, duvets, arts and crafts, just about everything. It was so big that I did not see all the stalls as I was running out of time. Thinking I had sandwiches which I could eat on the hoof, I had apparently left them in my B&B and so needed time to have lunch somewhere. But it was time well spent as I shared lunch with a fellow singer from Luxembourg, which was enjoyable, so the absence of sandwiches wasn't all that bad.

Near the market square. Where could this be but in England?

After Evensong we split into small groups and seven of us had a very nice meal in the beer garden of a pub at the foot of the cathedral hill. The evening was unexpectedly nice and carried a promise of real summer weather. Tomorrow perhaps?

This what we sang at Evensong:

Preces & Responses:   Grayston Ives (same as Monday)

Psalms:                       60 (Howells)

Canticles:                     WS Lloyd Webber in E minor

Anthem:                       Love Divine – Howard Goodall

Hymn:                          NEH 230

We follow the verger down and up these stairs every day