It had been ten years since we last sang in Bledington, thanks to the lovely connection through Ann’s parents, Sue and Tony, who live there. They’d been hoping to bring the Witchert Chorale back for another performance, and we were more than happy to oblige. Our concert theme this time was ‘Motherhood’, which perfectly complemented the Mothering Sunday weekend.
The setup in the church was, let’s say, ‘snug’ but with David’s expert wrangling, we all managed to fit. After a solid afternoon rehearsal, our tired legs and parched throats were saved by a seriously top-tier spread of cakes and tea, laid out in the sun-filled room at The Old Vicarage. Total bliss.
Once we’d changed into our concert gear, we lined up and made our way through Bledington’s shadowy little back lanes—very atmospheric!—and popped out beside the church, which looked pretty magical all lit up against the twilight sky.
The audience rolled in and filled the place right up. We kicked things off with the ever-beautiful ‘Bogoroditse Devo’ by Rachmaninoff, then moved through a lovely selection of pieces celebrating the Virgin Mary, with Tony reading some thoughtful poetry in between. All that time we’d spent practicing German and Czech definitely paid off!
At the interval, there were drinks and some delicious canapés (which we definitely appreciated). The second half leaned more into the sentimental—exactly the kind of music you’d hope to hear on Mother’s Day. We wrapped things up with an encore of Billy Joel’s ‘Lullaby,’ which went down an absolute treat with the audience.
Post-concert, we headed back to The Old Vicarage for a relaxed supper and a few drinks, hosted so generously by Sue and Tony. And because we can’t seem to go too long without singing, it wasn’t long before music was being passed around and we were back at it again. John Rutter’s pieces were a hit—with us and Sully, the rescue dog, who added her own special touch with some surprisingly tuneful howls.
The icing on the cake? We raised around £1000 for charity. All in all, a really lovely day full of music, laughter, and that warm fuzzy feeling only singing (and motherhood) can bring.
