Talking of Melbourne, the weather there looks like it's going to be scorching summer, which I'll be glad to again escape. I skyped with my parents last night (as has become weekly routine) and was told, among other things, that the next few days were going to be really warm.
As I said in my previous post, I was going to talk briefly about my time so far with the London Philharmonic Choir (LPC). After successfully auditioning at the end of my discovery rehearsal, I have been involved in a busy concert schedule. My first LPC concert was on September 26 when we performed Serge Taneyev's St John of Damascus with the London Philharmonic Orchestra at the Royal Festival Hall, which is the London Philharmonic's home base. Then our next concert was on October 30 at the Royal Albert Hall with Sir Karl Jenkins conducting a concert of his Stabat Mater and a selection of his most popular works, including Adiemus and Palladio. That was my first time ever at the Royal Albert Hall and although it was an exhausting concert, it was worth the standing ovation at the end.We've been back to the Royal Albert Hall several times since. We performed the Classical Spectacular there last month, and on Wednesday we had the first of our two Christmas concerts at the venue. We shared the stage with the world-renowned Kings' College Choir from Cambridge, who had just returned from an overseas tour and were probably feeling the effects of it, but nonetheless still sang well. Our second Christmas concert there is on Monday with the Trinity Boys Choir, which I'm quite looking forward to.
Last week we also held a charity Christmas gig at Waterloo station with the LPO brass. Of course, since Waterloo is very busy, we drew a large crowd, and maestro Vladimir Jurovski even made a cameo appearance! It would have been great to have a few more singers to be heard against the brass ensemble, but it was still fun and we were given a free drink at the Wellington Pub afterwards for our efforts. Much like back in Melbourne, choir singing has become an activity I look forward to during the week, especially when it's been a hectic one. In addition, I've made some wonderful friends and connections.
As some of you know, I spent Christmas in Germany several years ago as an exchange student, and was properly introduced to the wonderful world of the Weihnachtsmarkt (German Christmas market) and the baked Christmas goods that are a key part of festive celebrations in that part of the world. Last week, a friend from Berlin sent a package containing my favourite Christmas goodies: Niederegger Marzipankartoffeln, Dresdner Christstollen, Nürnberger Oblaten Lebkuchen, Ritter Sport Chocolates (Christmas Edition flavours!), and Gefüllte Zartbitter Herzen. This early Christmas present goes a long way to making this festive holiday away from family a bit more bearable, and also is a massive money-saver; I could have bought all this from the German Deli here, but it would have been very expensive!My plans for Christmas Day are fairly simple. A friend from choir who lives very nearby has offered me a ride to St Paul's for the 11 a.m. service, which I'm very grateful for, but I'll need to make sure I get there just after 10 a.m. latest, as I'm anticipating the service will have full attendance. Then after the service, I will need to use the public bike hire system to ride to my friend's place in east London for Christmas lunch, since public transport is not operating on the day. Then on the 28th I'm heading up to Edinburgh (with Mimi, of course!) for a few days, where a good friend from LPC who comes from there will be my local tour guide. Then I'll be back in London in time for New Year celebrations, but I don't think I'll be taking part in the ones in the city; there'll be too many people and I'm no party animal.
Anyway, I'll need the time to write up my annual review, which I missed out on doing last year, so I'm determined to do a big wrap-up in time for New Year's Eve.
Wishing you a merry and safe festive season with family and friends,
Cheers and God bless!
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