Stopfordian 2010–2011 - Stockport Grammar School

The Stopfordian 2010–2011
MUSIC TOUR TO AUSTRIA
On Friday 1 st July, 57 pupils and 6 members of staff set off on
what would be the best music tour yet. The journey, being
27 hours long was tiring and we were slightly delayed,
but the excitement of all the pupils and staff made it
enjoyable nevertheless.
We arrived at 6pm the following day, welcomed with a hot
delicious meal. The Hotel Hutter, where we were staying,
was charming and typically Austrian, situated in a stunning
valley. After our long journey, the remainder of the evening
was spent relaxing, playing basket ball, football, rounders and
table tennis, which showed the teachers in a whole new
competitive light.
In the afternoon we travelled to the Spa town of Bad Ischl,
where we were honoured to participate in an Austrian mass
service, by performing some of our repertoire. Afterwards we
performed in a small concert in the same church for
those who wanted to stay and listen. The church was
stunning and the acoustics were spectacular. We had a truly
magical experience.
On Monday 4 th July, we travelled to the very well known
Salzburg, where we met up with Andreas, our German
assistant for 2010/2011, who lived in the area and performed
with us. On the suggestion of Mr Flaherty, we decided to
spontaneously sing our two spiritual choral pieces in
Salzburg’s main square, which was a fantastic experience, as
a large, enthusiastic crowd was drawn. This was also a great
warm up for our next performance in Salzburg Cathedral.
That performance was certainly humbling and the cathedral
was exquisite. We felt privileged to have the opportunity to
perform there.
For those who wanted to, we could visit
Mozart’s birth house, which was a key piece of
musical history, fascinating to those who went. We
even got to see Mozart’s own clavichord.
Sunday saw us performing our first concert, which was in a
bandstand, in the picturesque town of St Gilgen. There was a
slight drizzle but with our advertisers diligently handing out
fliers, we managed to draw a large crowd.
Ice caves were on the cards for
Tuesday, which involved lots of
strenuous hiking up to a cable car, which
we took even higher up the mountain.
Some stayed at the alpine restaurant, while
66 Music, Drama and Art