A Look Back At Truro Cathedral Choir's Trip to St Davids, Wales
With the end of choir term in Truro on Sunday 7 July, our boy choristers and adults only had one day’s rest before going on tour to St Davids, Pembrokeshire, for 4 days of exciting activities and music-making.
After travelling on the first day, we settled into our accommodation. While Dean Simon was kindly preparing our evening meal, the choristers got a game of football going. The director of music was quick to take to the pitch and score a goal, before we ate our hearty supper.
The next morning we had a large breakfast before heading out to Whitesands Bay, where we built rock towers, sandcastles, and played games on the beach. After making our own sandwiches for lunch, we headed to St Davids Cathedral for an afternoon of rehearsing in the wonderful cathedral nave. We then enjoyed some jacket potatoes in the cathedral café before taking a stroll around the cathedral close, which culminated in a hotly contested Poohsticks tournament. We then sang our evening concert, including music by Gibbons, Handel, Brahms and Stanford. There were many very memorable performances, and an electric atmosphere in the building, alongside a very appreciative audience. We then speedily made it back to our accommodation, just in time to see England score the crucial goal in the Euros semi-final!
On the third day, we set out bright and early to The Real Adventure Company for a morning of coasteering. This was an exhilarating trip exploring Pembrokeshire’s coastline, involving rock climbing, jumping and wild swimming. The boys really supported each other as a team and showed great courage and bravery. After winding down with some board games, we headed into St Davids. Our leaving head choristers had time for a little treat, sitting down in the café for Welsh cakes and tea - delicious! Meanwhile, our Lay Vicars and Choral Scholars were kindly shown around the cathedral library, the only one of its kind in situ in Wales. Then we all went into the cathedral for a rehearsal and joint service with St Davids Cathedral Choir. Singing suitably epic music including Howells’ Collegium Regale and Handel’s Zadok the Priest, the two choirs sounded wonderful together. Our choristers then had some tasty and well-deserved pizza to end a wonderful day of adventure and music.
On our last day in Wales, we started with a very important event: the choristers’ talent show. We were treated to a variety of intriguing performances, from the ‘House of Kermit’ to the ‘Adventures of the Human Hamburger’, and some stand-up and magic tricks too. We then went to Dr Beynon's Bug Farm, where we spent the morning finding out about all different types of bugs and had the opportunity to meet some up-close too! After eating our packed lunch (which for some included some dried bugs…!) we then headed back to Cornwall. Sadly, the M5 traffic wasn’t on our side, but after a 9-hour journey of games, sleep, and singing, we arrived back home.
What a fantastic and memorable tour it’s been - thank you so much to everyone who made it special, in particular St Davids Cathedral for hosting us. Many thanks to our tour staff for all their hard work: Mrs Gregory, Miss Gregory, Mrs Issaka, Mr Wyatt and Dean Simon. And thank you to our choristers, Lay Vicars and Scholars for the amazing singing throughout. The team were wonderful ambassadors for Truro and for Cornwall, and everyone has earned a relaxing summer holiday. See you in September!
James Anderson-Besant
Director of Music