Day 4 - Rehearsal, Rain and Fish and Chips!
We ate breakfast this morning in the beautiful hall of St Catharine’s College, Cambridge, whose girls’ choir is hosting our visit to this beautiful university city. We enjoyed a hearty meal of sausage, tomatoes, baked beans, and hash browns – very English! – at long tables beneath oil paintings of the college’s headmasters.
After a rehearsal in which we drilled our competition music, we headed across the River Cam for a walking tour of Cambridge. We were split into three groups, but saw most of the same sights: the beautiful Greater St Mary’s church at the heart of Cambridge; the historic Trinity College with its stunning elevated library by Christopher Wren (who also designed St Paul’s Cathedral in London); and the impressive grounds of the famous King’s College.
Particular favorites were the statue of King Henry VIII holding a wooden chair leg at the Great Gate of Trinity College (the original golden scepter was stolen by undergraduates), and the unusual chronophage clock at Corpus Christi. Despite our best efforts with umbrellas and ponchos, we were completely drenched by the torrential downpour – classic English summer weather!
After lunch and a nap (sorely needed to dry all those wet clothes), we headed back to St Catharine’s for a joint rehearsal. In addition to the girls from the St Catharine’s College Choir, we were also joined by singers from the Perse School, an independent school in Cambridge dating back to the 16th century. it was very impressive to hear all 85 singers working on a 13-part canon from the English Renaissance, as well as John Tavener’s mystical Ikon of St Hilda. Mia, Emily S., and Abby W. did us proud with their amazing high Bs on the solo! Bob conducted the Holst Ave Maria, and Eric worked with all three choirs on the staged piece Nagasaki.
We were hungry after a very intense rehearsal, but enjoyed a delicious dinner at three different pubs! Bob and Sue’s groups headed to the historic 17th-century pub The Eagle, where Watson and Crick announced their discovery of DNA in 1953. Suzie and Marisa’s groups had a beautiful view of the River Cam at the Mill, while the boys headed across the fens to the Granta. They did an impressive job downing several enormous orders of fish and chips!
We headed back to the dorms to crash after a full day – looking forward to some punting on the river and shopping opportunities tomorrow!
Click through the slideshow below to view some highlights from today:
