Italian Choral Programme - Florence

20th July 2025 | Written by Karol (2nd Bass)

Our course began on a sunny afternoon at St Mark’s English Church, Florence. After introductions from the course directors and teasers of the nice things to come over the fortnight, we had a brief rehearsal to get used to singing together for the first time.

We then braved the heat to climb up to the Basilica di San Miniato, situated at one of the highest points in the city with an unmatchable view, where we later watched the sunset. Some of the group managed to catch the tail end of mass and heard the plainsong performed by the monks, after which we were granted exclusive access to sing some of the repertoire we’d worked on earlier in the day to local tourists and clergy. After enjoying the Florentine sunset with a cold Peroni, we had a lavish three-course dinner to celebrate a successful first night!

Day two had a relaxed start with some free time enjoyed by the group in various ways; some explored the historic Uffizi Gallery, others opted for a swim! Then it was time for more rehearsal in preparation for the first service of the tour at Saint Apostoli Church, which was very special - featuring rep like Byrd’s Mass for Four Voices and Paul Mealor’s Ubi Caritas, conducted by the brilliant James Jordan, who gave us insights he learnt directly from Paul. We ended the day with delicious homemade pasta, followed by drinks out in town for some of the group.

Our final day in Florence was the busiest but possibly the most rewarding, having the privilege to sing in perhaps the two best acoustics in the city: the Basilica di Santa Croce and the Cathedrale di Santa Maria del Fiore with its impressive dome. After a brief rehearsal at the Basilica, the service went smoothly until one of the priests decided we had exceeded their time limit during the offertory and consequently stopped the choir in the middle of Dum Transisset, which became quite an amusing moment.

We then made our way to the Cathedral, grabbing some food and ice cream along the way. We were granted exclusive access to the cathedral, allowing us to sing a series of pieces and experience different parts of the building’s acoustics. Acclaimed composer Bob Chilcott had joined us the evening before, and our first experience with him was sight-reading his setting of God so loved the world at the high altar, where the chords reverberated through the building for several seconds. The choir then assembled in a circular formation directly under the dome for a totally different acoustic experience, spaced about a metre apart from one another, with Caius directing from the centre - a moment I’m sure we won’t forget for a long time.

We finished off the day with a fantastic workshop led by Bob, who took the choir through some of his music and shared wonderful stories, followed by huge pizzas enjoyed on the steps of Santo Spirito square. Now onwards, on our first train to Rome!

Karol (2nd bass)