Once again the choir sang in the lovely setting of Old Durham Gardens. As always with this event we were at the mercy of the weather and as we approached the gardens ominous dark clouds began to obscure the sun. Just as we were about to start our first song (Slava Vychnih) the rain started and having planned for this eventuality, we switched to ‘Singin’ in the Rain’ instead. This had several effects on the choir - Andy started laughing so much that for a time he had difficulty conducting, the rain became merely a stage prop to our singing and the choir was so invigorated that when Andy asked if we should carry on with the set in the rain there was a resounding ‘yes’! In fact the weather quickly improved and there was actually some sunshine later on.
Our first set included some of our favourite stirring songs including ‘Hallelujah’, ‘Nkosi Sokelel’l and ‘Finlandia’. This was followed by a viol trio whose gentle tones had a restful quality. It was fascinating recognising modern pieces played on these medieval instruments. By the time we started the second set the audience had grown to perhaps fifty or more. This set included solos from Kirsty, Felicity, Catherine and Karen and we finished with the tenors leading us in ‘Imagine’ which is now one of the choir’s favourites. It was a very enjoyable occasion for us choir members and also hopefully for the audience - we did receive complimentary feedback.