Many thanks to Hannah for this report from the Medina High Community Choir (MHCC) Tour. Ed
The MHCC’s busy 2010 concert season culminated a highly successful week-long tour to Brittany, France.
With a total of four major concerts at impressive venues and countless, less-formal appearances in market squares and at local landmarks throughout South-West Brittany, the MHCC triumphed at every concert, receiving calls for encores, standing ovations and invitations to return wherever they went.
Many venues
The choir performed gospel concerts at the cathedrals of Josselin and Quimper, the amphitheatre in Concarneau and the great churches of Pont L’Abbé and Ploërdut, the oldest remaining Romanesque church in France.
The French audiences particularly appreciated the fact that different members of the choir introduced each song in French and that translations were given, when appropriate by Choir Director, Hannah Brear, who also works as a French teacher at Medina High School.
Thanks from the host
The Priest at the great Abbey of Pont L’Abbé said “Thank you for coming to our community and enchanting us all with your beautiful gospel concert. It has been a long time since I have been so impressed and moved by what I have heard and I have received many letters of praise from members of my congregation who were fortunate enough to attend your wonderful event.
“Please promise to come back as soon as you can for a repeat performance – I have spoken to neighbouring communities and we will fill the church for you on every night of a week-long tour should you wish it.
“It is wonderful to host an event, featuring the universal language of music that has the power to bring people and communities together. With all our hearts, thank you.”
Quality shines through
Above all, it was the quality of the Choir’s singing that made them stand out from other groups that have toured the region in the past.
Traditional gospel classics such as O Happy Day, Joshua fit the Battle of Jericho and Go Down, Moses! went down a storm with the French audiences as well as pieces from the more modern gospel repertoire, such as Rule the World, He Ain’t Heavy and Bridge Over Troubled Water.
That said, it certainly wasn’t a case of all work and no play for the choir and there was much fun to be had in Brittany, eatingé out, haggling at local markets, visiting chateaux and other local landmarks.
Kept busy throughout
The choir were overwhelmed by what the region had to offer, and although the weather wasn’t brilliant, it didn’t stop doing any of the things that were planned on our itinerary, including a little boat trip to a small Island (île Tudy) for moules-frites and crepes where, on the jetty, the choir seized the opportunity to sing another rendition of its trademark song, Over the Rainbow which was received with great acclaim at the BBC3 Choir of the Year competition earlier in the year.
The choir’s final concert was a far cry from the formality of the beautiful cathedrals it had previously had the honour of singing in.
Abba and Beatles wowed the audience
For the choir’s final performance they did a re-run of the famous Abba and Beatles concert performed at Medina Theatre in the summer of 2009.
They performed this at a packed cabaret venue in front of an audience of hundreds of English, French and German holiday makers and although the acoustics were not as good as in the great cathedrals, it was perfect timing for the choir to let their hair down, to adorn their black choir tour t-shirts with brightly coloured beads and spangles and get out their flowery flares and denim for a second time!
Growth of choir
When Choir Director, Hannah, started the community choir a few years ago with only a handful of members, she could never have dreamed that only four years later, membership would have grown to over 80 people and that 46 of them would join her on a European tour to sing to a professional standard in some of the most prestigious venues in Northern France.
The outstanding achievement of the tour is a real testament to the MHCC Committee – with their months of planning, hard work and dedication, the tour was bound to be a successful one.
Unforgettable for all involved
It was an unforgettable experience for all involved – choir members and partners who accompanied them on tour, French audiences, the local French press, tourists who came to our open-air concerts and local inhabitants who instantly became Choir-groupies, following us around from venue to venue, delighting in our every note!
The impact of the Choir’s first tour continues as new and exciting relationships have formed both within our choir community and between our choir and the French communities who were so thankful to us for our participation in the cultural life of their region.
They are eager to welcome us back next year but nothing has been confirmed as yet, we may look even further afield for future tours – Hannah has always dreamed of touring America with the choir, after all, as her experiences of the Medina High Community Choir have proved, if you’re going to dream, you may as well dream big!
An amazing experience
Pam Parish, choir member said of the tour, “Can’t believe the fun we had on tour; sang in all sorts of places from markets to mini-amphitheatre, quayside to quaint churches, cliffs to Cathedrals, castles to on the coach!
“Sang our hearts out and we just got better and better. The soloists were amazing, raising hairs on backs of necks and bringing tears to eyes -the acoustics in the Cathedrals and Churches were wonderful, the buildings themselves were examples of fantastic architecture.
“We visited glorious places; found some amazing architecture, pretty medieval streets, bustling markets – good food and wine along with friendly people. The tour was a fantastic experience, well organised and great fun.
“The driver became part of the ‘gang’, listened and took photos, he even promised to join choir in September! The accompanying partners were absorbed into the choir, moving equipment, handing out flyers and rustling up audiences – and Cherry’s partner John was a great crowd raiser with his clapping, big grins and enthusiasm.
“The whole tour was a fantastic experience, well organized and great fun – can’t wait for the next one!”
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