During spring break, members of the Briarcrest Singers and Briarcrest Concert Choir of Briarcrest Christian School toured England visiting London, Bath, and Cambridge. The 43-member choir performed at Canterbury Cathedral, the American School at Egham, Bath Abbey, Ely Cathedral, and Great St. Mary’s Church in Cambridge. In addition to the performances, the choir also toured many historical sites throughout England including The Tower of London (home of the Royal Crown Jewels), Canterbury Cathedral, Windsor Castle (residence of the Queen of England), the Roman Baths of Bath, Warwick Castle, and Cambridge University.
While in London, members of the choir also attended several London musical productions including Mary Poppins, The Phantom of the Opera, and Les Miserables. Other members of the choir ventured into the streets of London on a Jack the Ripper Walking Tour. Others enjoyed incredible views of London while riding the London Eye (a large Ferris wheel built for the Y2K celebration).
The choir first performed on Monday at Canterbury Cathedral in Canterbury. Canterbury Cathedral is the church of the Archbishop of Canterbury who is the leader of the worldwide Anglican Church. In fact, the choir’s performance was just steps away from the alter at which Thomas Becket was martyred. The choir’s performance was well received and the presiding rector asked for an encore.
On Tuesday the choir performed twice at the Egham American School. The choir performed for selected students and was able to interact with students from all over the world. Following the concert, the choir toured Windsor Castle, the residence of the Queen of England. Part of the tour included portions of the Queen’s residence and viewing works of Leonardo Di Vinci.
On Wednesday the choir performed at Bath Abbey in Bath. The performance venue was an extremely moving experience within the incredibly worshipful and acoustical environment. The choir performed an hour long concert of sacred literature ranging from the English Renaissance to contemporary composers. Again the choir was well-received and the concert was well-attended by other tourists including the Washington State University women’s soccer team.
Thursday the choir traveled from Bath to Cambridge with a stop at Warwick Castle in Warwick. The Castle is the oldest castle in all of England with portions built by William the Conqueror. The castle provided an opportunity for the students to explore medieval life with live action displays including the World’s Largest Trebuchet. In fact, the students were fortunate to view the trebuchet in action. It was the first use of the trebuchet in over two months. The trebuchet launched a 35 lb. concrete ball over 300 yards. All of our students were astonished.
The choir then traveled to Cambridge to participate in a sung Eucharist at the King’s College Chapel on the campus of King’s College at Cambridge University. The service was extremely moving with many students and chaperons participating in the Holy Eucharist. Also, listening to the incredible service music performed by the world famous King’s College Boy’s Choir was breathtaking. An unexpected moment happened during the service when the King’s College Chaplain prayed specifically for Briarcrest Christian School of Memphis.
Friday was possibly the most incredible day for our students chorally. The choir first toured Ely Cathedral, a large and beautiful cathedral in the small town of Ely. The Cathedral was moving, but the experience of singing in the Lady Chapel at Ely will never be forgotten. The choir performed a concert to a packed chapel of tourist, chaperons and local residents. The choir’s performance was incredible while being enhanced by the chapel’s six-second reverb. In fact, many consider the chapel the finest acoustical environment for singing in the United Kingdom. The choir was well received as seen from the email responses below from attendees from England:
I would like to compliment your school choir regarding their recent tour of England. I was with a party of senior citizens who were visiting Ely Cathedral on Friday March 16th. As a result of, what was to us the most fortunate of coincidences, that day the Briarcrest Christian School Choir were performing a concert which many of us attended. It was undoubtedly the high point of the day for many of us, and I would just like to say thank you for making a pleasant day out into something wonderful which many of us will never forget, thankyou.
Louis Forster, on behalf of Birchwood Access Seniors Louis Forster@ntlworld.com
Dear Bill
My wife and I had the good fortune to hear the Briarcrest Singers at Ely Cathedral, England last Friday.
We thought their presentation of music was superb with delivery given with grace, dignity and pride. These pupils are excellent ambassadors for your school and I will ask you to pass on our thanks to both pupils and staff.
Regards and best wishes
Jan and Geoff Sharp.
Following the Ely Cathedral performance, the choir quickly returned to Cambridge’s Great St. Mary’s Church to participate in a personal two and one half hour workshop with English composer and conductor, John Rutter. The choir performed three of Mr. Rutter’s compositions as well as works by Thomas Tallis, Morten Lauridsen, Elizabeth Poston, and William Dawson. Mr. Rutter was kind enough after the workshop to sign autographs of his compositions for each student and most of the adults. The workshop with John Rutter incredibly capped a superb week of singing and sightseeing. Soli Deo Gloria!!
Dr. William P. Rayburn is the Briarcrest Christian School Director of Fine Arts and the High School Choir Director.