Radley College Tour, February 2023
Wow! What a wonderful start to music tours to the Pays d’Auge! The 80-strong group from Radley College delivered an absolutely packed schedule here, full of concerts and new friendships, which has had a marvellous impact on the cultural life of our region.
The first day began with a tour of the Chateau Bourg Saint Leonard, in the grounds of their accommodation centre, led by the Mayor of the village of Gouffern en Auge.
The rest of the day was spent at Chateau Canon, with rehearsals alongside the Lisieux Conservatoire Youth Orchestra, some free time for socialising, leading to a packed full house audience for the evening concert.
The concert hall at the chateau features a raised mezzanine, which was just perfect for the combined orchestral and choral items:
The following day began with a prestigious performance at the Sunday Mass service at the Basilica of Saint Therese, Lisieux. This service was live-broadcast and watched by people all over the world! The video footage of the live stream can be found at the Sanctuaire facebook page here.
After the service, the group spent the rest of the day in Honfleur, with free time to explore this pretty port town and rehearsals at the Greniers a Sel. Joined by scores of young musicians from the Ecole de Musique ‘Erik Satie’ d’Honfleur, the project centered around the creation of a giant multi-level orchestra with 110 musicians playing together.
The concert was packed that evening, with 600 people crammed into the venue (standing-room only at the back!), finishing with a rendition of Ed Sheeran’s Shape of You:
For the final day of the tour, they visited the market day at Pont L’Eveque (famous for beautiful half-timbered buildings and strong cheese!) and then rehearsals followed by a lunchtime chamber music recital at the auditorium of the Lisieux Conservatoire. There was then some free time in the afternoon to enjoy the ever-popular Cerza Zoo in glorious sunshine.
The final event of the tour took place that evening, and the accommodation centre was transformed into a jazz club! The evening began with a special dinner of local produce accompanied musically by the Henry Lemarchand Jazz Trio:
Following which, the students took to the stage and people from the nearby village came along to listen to a whole evening of jazz.
The evening ended with a performance of La Mer delivered by the Radley students accompanied by the jazz trio, wonderful memories of this fun event!
On behalf of the Lisieux Conservatoire and Ecole de Musique d’Honfleur, we would like to thank Radley College for their energy, enthusiasm, and musical panache. This was an unforgettable project which has greatly enhanced the life of the music schools and region in general. Merci beaucoup!
