Mallorca
“So, it’s Mallorca then, yes?” Five seemingly innocent words spoken back in early 2018 as the committee settled on extending our regular Cathedral tour to the near continent. Now the Singers are quite used to packing up our voices, music, shiny shoes, bow ties and heading off to Europe, but truthfully, it has been a few years. Springtime 2018 saw some serious planning – the main early effort focussing on finding venues, hotels, flights and transfers… Our beloved chairman soon stumbled upon a local travel guru named Suzanne. She was willing to help, fast thinking and fast talking – oh, and unlike us, she could speak Catalan.
Hotel and flights secured, we decided on a recce. In November. In the cold. In the rain. Insane…! Over two days and two nights, we secured a fabulous line up of performance venues, including (after some embarrassingly plaintive begging), a full traditional Mass at the great giant gothic Palma Cathedral, La Seu.
Added to this, we secured a singing day trip to pretty Soller, travelling there by original wooden train and a lovely musical Gala evening, complete with food and wine from the splendid people at the Anglican church in Palma.
Of course, there was plenty of beautiful sacred music including Bruckner, Gjeilo, Faure, Vierne and others - it is perhaps not surprising that the incredible setting of Palma Cathedral produced a memorable musical experience right across the choir. Our recessional ‘recital’ included Vierne’s Kyrie and when we had sung our final chord, like Oliver, the head of the Cathedral clergy asked for more. We were just delighted.
We gave them Finzi’ s ‘God is Gone Up’ to finish. Gaudi’s famous altar piece trembled as Andrew found the swell box on the decidedly tricky Mallorcan organ…. Our conductors deserve a mention here; Nic Cummings, Julie Shaw and a budding young MD applicant, Joe Tobin shared the baton.
Please don’t think for a moment our repertoire was all sacred. No, no! The choir even rose to the challenge of a rather rapidly rehearsed hotel flash mob (Duke Ellington – ‘Don’t mean a thing’) that was billed as a male voice choir and followed a Tina Turner tribute act (don’t ask..), we performed some folk songs, spirituals and a fairly wide range of light music including Northern Lights, Ev’ry Time We Say goodbye, The Goslings, Lonesome Valley – you get the picture. For most of us, it will be the first, and possibly last time we sing ‘I do like to be beside the Seaside’ in full harmony to a packed breakfast restaurant. I did say, don’t ask.
The beautiful train to Soller - happy people..!
The ancient train from Palma to Soller is gorgeous, wooden, charming and intrepidly weaves its mountainous way through orange and lemon groves. Rather romantic actually. The picture here is of a supremely happy choir all aboard, on our way to a sunny day of singing.
Our audiences usually see us all dressed up, formal, serious, but our week in Mallorca this Summer reminded us that we also love colourful shorts, interesting shirts, strange hats, inane smiles and sunshine. Good for the voice you know – or was that maybe something to do with the local fayre… Either way, we will be off again on our choral holidays sometime soon.
Delores. Bass. Decidedly average travel consultant.