Dear
Singers
Welcome
to our Autumn newsletter.
Please feel free
to forward it to
other good singers you know -
especially as it contains a sneak
preview of our 2019
programme!
2018 Roundup
This
has been
a great year for Runbysingers with
lots of new faces
and some new destinations - as well
as a welcome return to some hardy
annuals - Venice and Assisi.
Our Avila visit
allowed us the privilege of singing
Victoria's Requiem in the
cathedral where he sang as a boy
chorister. And the sun shone
throughout the week.
Maybe June is the best time to
visit? July saw a
performance of Brahms Requiem in
Dresden and dinner on the Danube
prior to a very
well-attended concert in
Budapest.
August
is the
traditional slot for the ever-popular
Assisi Summer
School. This year it featured a concert in St
Peter's Abbey and participation
during mass at
the Basilica of St Francis. Later that month
Nigel
Perrin directed our first UK Summer School at Bath
Spa
University concentrating on the
music of Purcell and his
contemporaries. Another jam-packed
concert !
Portuguese
Polyphony dominated September - with a
splendid week in Evora
- and Sherry - with a week of
Andalusian decadence concluding
with a cabaret dinner in a
bodega and a concert featuring a
specially commissioned
anthem in praise of sherry. Then,
earlier this month, a long warm
weekend in Venice in the
company of David
Ogden and trumpeter Crispian Steele-Perkins.
Pictures
of all
these weeks can be found
here
RBS now part of AITO
RBS
has
recently joined Inntravel, Martin
Randall and many other
leading specialist Tour
Operators as a member of AITO -
the Association of Independent
Tour Operators. Acceptance by
this prestigious
organisation is only possible
after intensive due diligence inspection.
Membership is a guarantee
of high ethical
standards and requires that all
holiday money is
properly protected in the event of failure. This is a
link to
our page on the AITO
website.
The 2019 Programme
Now
the part you have all been
waiting for... We
are very pleased
with next year's programme which
should offer something to
suit all
musical tastes and
aspirations. We offer a mix
of early and later music,
a capella and accompanied,
familiar
and new. We also aim to give a
clearer idea of
the standard of singing required which does
vary from
week to week.
Health
Warning: Booking
for the main
programme will not
start until January and these are
all the details we have at
this
early stage. They are accurate
at time of writing. You
will be given
advance notice of when
booking starts and
you will have priority
over the general
public for a limited
period when
full details are published on the
Runbysingers
website.
A
Week
in
Toledo
2
June -
9
June
Directed
by
Peter
North
Toledo
is
the
undisputed
cultural
capital
of
Spain
and
a
great
centre
of
gastronomy
and
music.
Expect
a
programme
which
features
sacred
choral
music
from
England
and
Spain
as
well
as
something
a
little
more
contemporary.
June
Week for Advanced Singers,
Regensburg
16 June - 23
June
Directed by David
Skinner
We will make our first visit to this
historic
German city - which has a long
association with Early
Music - for another week of a
capella Renaissance
riches with David Skinner. A good
standard of
sight-reading is
required and singers will be asked
to
complete a more detailed application
form.
A Bach Pilgrimage of
Thuringia
and Saxony
6 July - 14 July
Directed by Jeremy
Jackman
And
now for
something completely different. This is
not a
'classic' Runby event with five hours of
rehearsals a day: our focus
here is on following the
footsteps of Bach, staying in
four-star hotels in Weimar and
Leipzig with visits to Kothen,
Eisenach, Muhlhausen and
Arnstadt. There will be
expert guides in each location and a
luxury coach to take us from place
to place.
We willl sing a short musical tribute in
most of the
places we visit and there will be two short
concerts in Weimar
and Leipzig plus an
opportunity to sing in the great
Thomaskirche - at the tomb of the
Master.
Early Music Week
in
Ghent
28 July - 4
August
Directed by David
Allinson
For
fans of
David Allinson, this week almost speaks
for itself.
Following the rapidly sold out success
of Evora, we continue the Early
Music theme with works by
the Flemish masters. Plus
boat trips, chocolate, beer and
other Belgian
goodies.
Assisi Summer
School
4
August - 11
August
Directed by Nigel
Perrin
Nigel
Perrin
returns to Assisi as a special Guest
Conductor - some
of you will remember that Nigel was
the very first conductor of the
Assisi Summer School. The work
under consideration is
the exquisite - but
challenging - Pizzetti
Requiem interpolated with appropriate a
capella motets by
masters of the Italian
Renaissance.
English Summer
School,
Lincoln
18
August - 23 August
Directed by Nigel Perrin and Jeremy
Jackman
Following
the popular
success of the Bath English
Summer School, we move
north to the University of
Lincoln where
we will offer two
choral programmes - sacred and
secular
- which will run during
the same week. Some work will
take place in smaller groups
and
singers will be
asked to apply in advance for
specific
modules.
Hereford
Cathedral
Weekend
29
August - 31
August
Directed by Peter
North
2019
sees the
welcome
return of our
traditional
cathedral
weekend. Learn
to
sing like a
cathedral
chorister
as we lead the
worship in the
historic
cathedral of
Hereford. We
expect to sing
at least two
services during
the
weekend.
The
Glory
of
Venice
2
October
-
6
October
Directed
by
Colin
Durrant
This
popular
long
weekend
is
always
fully
booked
so
stand
by
in
January
to
apply
in
good
time.
We
stay
in
the
best
part
of
Venice,
near
to
all
the
sights
but
away
from
the
crowds.
And
we
get
to
sing
Venetian
music
in
Venice.
No
wonder
it's
so
successful.
Pictures
from
last
year
here
.
A
week
in
Puglia,
Southern
Italy
6
October
-13
October
Directed
by
David
Ogden
Could
this be
the most relaxing week on offer next
year? Our week
will be in a charming unspoilt
fishing town on the coast of
Puglia far away from the
tourists. Most of the
accommodation will be in
self-catering apartments and there
will be outings to Ostuni and Lecce.
Please don't apply if you
don't like fish,
Italy, or being by the sea!
Spanish
Retreat 2,
Northern
Spain
30 October
- 3
November Directed by
Peter
North
OK -
this could
be even more relaxing. Perhaps.
There is limited
availability at our monastery in
the foothills of the Pyrenees.
We share our rehearsal space with
a community of
Benedictine monks who sing Gregorian
Chant during six daily
services. Meanwhile we shall prepare
to sing Durufles Requiem
in time for All Souls
in an ancient Early Gothic Chapel - and
our own Ely-inspired
service of Compline. Pictures of
last year's Spanish
Retreat
here
Return
to
Barcelona
11 September
-
15 September Directed
by David
Skinner
Last
year's
visit to the remarkable city of
Barcelona was very
special with a performance in the
Sagrada Familia cathedral
and another benefit concert in a
theatre outside the city. We
plan a very similar visit
for 2019 but with David Skinner
wielding the baton. I think
you can expect Tallis and Byrd to
make their
presence felt in Catalonia. Pictures of last year's
course
here.
Mozart at Midnight, Vienna
2
December - 5 December
Directed by Jeremy Jackman
Due to the popularity of this year's event - and the large numbers who couldn't be accommodated we will repeat this very special Mozart Requiem event in 2019. Jeremy Jackman will direct our performance in the Karlskirche on the day and hour of Mozart's death. With full orchestra and soloists. Pictures of the 2018 event here.
Thats
it for now. Looking forward to another year of splendid
music-making in
2019
Best wishes
Nick &
Jane
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