Categories: uncategorized
Date: 16 May 2005 10:39:57
Not much singing for me this weekend, but a treat of listening to it instead. I love it when other people do all the hard work!
The West Devon Chorale (with Traveller as Bass soloist) sang a wonderful selection of Russian and Eastern music on Saturday night - 'Magic of the East' - music by Handl, Gorecki, Dvorak, Kodaly - including Pange Lingua, Ochte Nash, Cherubic Hymn, Bogoroditse Dyevo, and Dvorak Mass in D. The a capella items in the first half were soaringly beautiful - some of the best choral music I've heard in the Westcountry for a long time. The party afterwards was pretty good, too!
Only one service on Sunday morning - Pentecost - or Whitsunday as I still prefer to call it. 'You shall receive Power' by Sumsion was the anthem, enthusiastically sung, just as we were taught to sing it in the Cathedral. Who cares if our church is a lot smaller..... The peace of the Eucharist was somewhat shattered by the enthusiastic tuning up of the ecumenical Pentecost praise band outside in the square for the 11am service, but we have come to expect that now as it happens every year. They have the perfect excuse of being overcome by the Spirit. (I'm surprised the town centre yobs haven't learnt that excuse yet ;) - probably a different sort of spirit.)
Not having evensong meant we were able to go on a foray to the other side of the Tamar (here be dragons) to the little village of Stoke Climsland, where the Dante Quartet were giving their final music festival concert in the church. It was a wonderfully relaxing concert of beautiful music by Mozart and Schubert, with a delicious cream tea in the interval. One of the best things about classical music concerts in the area is the chance to meet up with old friends, sometimes people you haven't seen for many years, and this one was no exception.