The choir has customarily undertaken a tour every couple of years or so. Usually the tour has been to a nearby country, with two or three concerts, often including a joint one with a local choir.
Normandy July 2023
41 singers plus 6 spouses went to Rouen, led by our MD Cole Bendall and with Helena Twentyman as our accompanist. After visiting Monet’s wonderful gardens at Giverny we moved on to the church of Sainte-Foy in the lovely town of Conches-en-Ouche for our first concert in front of a very appreciative audience. The following day, after exploring Rouen, we travelled to Beauvais to sing in the amazing medieval cathedral of Saint-Pierre with its lovely astronomical clock. The cathedral has an extraordinary echo which our soloists made full use of! Although it was Bastille Day and appropriate civic festivities were taking place in the town square, we managed to draw a very good audience. Later that evening, back in Rouen, we were treated to a Bastille Day firework display. On the way to our final concert in Ouistreham, some members visited the Bayeux Tapestry whilst others visited the seaside at Arromanches. The concert took place in the church of Saint-Sansom; although the audience was small, this somehow made the concert much more intimate and carried an emotional charge for many of us. The Tour had a fitting ending with a very enjoyable group meal in a Rouen restaurant. Photos of the Tour are available on the Choir Tour Photos page.
Brockham Goes to Portugal, July 2018
In July 2018 32 choir members plus two non-singers went to Tomar in Portugal to take part in the Zezere Arts Festival. We took part in an informal concert with other performers, presenting some of the items from our Summer Concert. But the main event was a concert in the wonderful Convento de Cristo with other singers (many of them Irish) and a full orchestra, performing Dvorak’s “Heirs of the White Mountain” (in Czech!), Gounod’s “Gallia” and a piece by the Festival composer in residence, David Miguel “Sorrow Came and Wept”, under the baton of the Festival Director Brian McKay. There was an after-concert party in the main square of Tomar, and the following day was free to explore the town (using the local tuk-tuk service if wished), visit the aqueduct serving the castle and Convento, visit the picturesque local park (and its exercise facilities), and relax by the lovely hotel pool. On our final day we visited a port wine lodge in Porto, complete with a port tasting, and then crossed the Douro river for our last meal together in a restaurant overlooking the river. Photos of the tour are on the Choir Tour Photos page.
Summer Outing to Portsmouth, August 2017
The choir had an ‘Outing’ to Portsmouth from Thursday 10 to Saturday 12 August, based at the Marriott Hotel Portsmouth. As well as enabling members to explore Portsmouth, the main focus was on Friday 11 August with a choral workshop guided by our MD Patrick Barrett with guest MD Neil Ferris. This was followed by a choir dinner at the hotel. Photos are on the Choir Tour Photos page.
Winchelsea 2015
Instead of a full tour the choir had a ‘Weekend Away’ in Winchelsea from 24 to 26 July with a concert at the Church of St Thomas, Winchelsea in aid of local charity Activities, Respite, Rehabilitation, Care Centre (ARRCC).
Photos from the Weekend are on the Choir Tour Photos page.
Cardiff 2013
The Cardiff Tour, whose concerts were titled “Pastime with Good Company”, took place from 1 – 5 August. Based in the Hilton Hotel, we sang a full concert at the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama (1 August), a shorter, more informal concert at the National Museum of Wales (2 August), another formal concert at the United Reformed Church (3 August), a nearly full-length concert at the beautiful St John’s City Church (4 August) and a short informal concert at the Cardiff Millennium Centre with live webcast (5 August) – the video of this concert can be seen at:www.youtube.com/watch?v=PJoV9W_EsU8&feature=share&list=PLpsYnJdShmy2mbljsKj8GawPurZckXWpt .
At the concerts on 1, 3 & 4 August we were joined by the Symphonic Brass Quintet from the College of Music & Drama, who accompanied us on Pastime with Good Company and also played their own instrumental sets. An very enjoyable outing to the National History Museum at St Fagan’s was organised by Tour Director David John who surpassed his previous successes with the superb arrangements for this tour. We were of course led, cajoled and inspired by our Musical Director Andy Phillips, and accompanied by our superb and ever-willing accompanist Marion Lea.
Photos from the Tour are on the Choir Tour Photos page.
Yorkshire 2011
Our Yorkshire Tour 2011 ran from 28 July to 1 August, taking in concerts in Ripon Cathedral (29 July), Leeds Parish Church (30 July), Selby Abbey (31 July) and an informal performance in York Minster (1 August) followed by a celebratory tour lunch. We were accompanied on the Tour by the Yorkshire Imperial Band, a very fine brass band for whom we hosted a social event following the Leeds Parish Church concert. One of the aims of the Tour was to raise funds for Help for Heroes and a collection was held at each performance, raising £700 for the charity.
Photos of the Tour can be found under the Choir Tour Photos page.
Recent tours have been to:
The Hague
In 2008 we visited The Hague over the August Bank Holiday weekend and sang two concerts (including one with a local choir, Magna Voce) and participated in morning service at the American Protestant Church in The Hague. This photo shows the choir singing in the Nassaukerk, Amsterdam.
Ghent
In 2006 we visited Ghent, in Belgium, and sang in St Michielskerk and St Jacobskerk, as well as a concert in St Lievenskerk, Ledeberg (as part of the local ‘Onion Market Festival’!) with local choir Cantabile. This choir visited us the following May and took part in our Opera Choruses concert. The photo shows the interior of St Michielskerk.
Brittany
We visited Dinan in 2004 and gave concerts in the Presbyterian Church of Notre Dame des Greves and St Croix in St Malo, and at St Michel in Plérin, where our concert became a remarkable remembrance service for four local boys killed in a fire. The photo shows the church of St Michel.