1999

At Glyndebourne Jean Taylor gave us seats for Marriage of Figaro as our silver wedding present . it was heaven! I have only been once more Magic flute standing ticket on the day we won the Olympics for London! 

Book 7 p.1361 Cardinal Hume died. It was impossible to get a seat at the funeral which was televised. Liz went to the vespers and I to the lying in state.A great humble man. P.1362 royal wedding at Windsor. I think this was Prince Edward. P.1364 Dennis had done well in his A levels. June 1999 p.1367 vespers for Cardinal Hume and ordination of Sunith Nonis at Addiscombe. I used Dad's extension of Be still for the presence. P.1368 st John's Upper Norwood still needed £72000 for the restoration of the Lewis organ but did not apply to the lottery! We had a mass remembering Liz's Dad 2 years after he died. In fact I have played Finlandia every year. P.1371. P.1379 we spent a week in Prague for our silver wedding trip. An apartment in the centre and we enjoyed lots of concerts and organ recitals. The Mozart, Dvorak, Smetana and Jewish museums were fascinating. We saw Don Giovanni at the opera house and were moved to a better box! P.1392  mistakes in the transposition of Dad's wedding anthem to be sung again on October 9. P.1394 a memory of me as a baby Dad dancing to Charlie is my darling with me in his arms. P.1396 describes the silver wedding Mass in detail. Michael Fleming played the new organ and Adrian conducted. Rachmaninov, Faur e and Byrd were included. We appear to have no photos! P.1399 Dennis moved into the house in Bow p.1399. P.1415 Chorus on Birmingham, Basingstoke, Cologne, Baden Baden, RFH, Cardiff and Ely on TV all Beethoven 9 and Sir Simon Rattle! I had been on strike! John and Bruce Alexander visited. P.1416 Advent carols at Our Lady's and Revd Val from St Mildred's presided. I am interested to see I was reading The Tablet, Choir and Organ, Laudate, CMQ and Organists review although I abandoned the last. P.1421 the start of a difficult year at Battersea Park when I was accused and cleared of racism. Fortunately I had kept records. In the end Liz insisted I went to the doctor and he gave me a month off. The strain had been too much having to work with somebody who kept going sick with a fever. The Sarum coll e Orthodox Lent retreat was excellent. We were all feasting while the group from Bath orthodox church were fasting. Chime committee doing good work on linking church music organisations dealing with music education.

1998

Letter from Dom Andrew Moore

Dec 1997 Verdi concert in Birmingham and Festival Hall. The 1998 planner mentions Saturdays in Guildford, Peterborough, Ely, Chelmsford, Canterbury, all with Michael Fleming. Haydn Nelson Mass is listed in March. P.1138 Dennis working at insurance company and Bruce playing golf at Shirley Park golf club.  P.1144 Liz became a parent governor at St Joseph's college. I sang Schubert Serenade for my chorus reaudition and David Hill told me people liked my voice. This was very encouraging. I heard David play at Notre Dame de France, Leicester Square. 5 of us sang at St John's Murrill in E and Faire is the heaven.p.1145 I had met Lionel Dakers and Harry Bramma was to retire from RSCM.p.1149 4 cassettes of the singing from Canterbury RSCM course. I reviewed a liturgy disk for CMQ. P.1151 Guild council i was publicity officer. I also welcomed people to meetings as nobody else did it! The Bromley and Croydon Organists association visited the fine organ in Tonbridge school.
p.1153 Cardinal Basil Hume signed his book "Basil in blunderland" for me at a Guild presentation at the cathedral. I met him twice and all he said was "Have you got a cup of tea" and "Pray for me". I would have loved to chat to him.

More activiity

 ACertCM presentation by the Papal Nuncio because Cardinal Hume could not attend includes Michelle Aitkens next to the nuncio Archbishop's House

Fr Peter at Louise's wedding 2007

p.827 Louise excellent results, Dennis climbing in Snowdonia and Bruce on a cricket course. p.829 I sent a service for the rededication of the organ at Notre Dame. I have been involved in two such ceremonies - the new Cathedral digital at Addiscombe and the organ at St Michael's. p.835 Dad wrote out music for me or this might be an extension of "Be still for the presence of the Lord". p.836 details about Ralph Downes and ffrench-Beytagh. p.839 videos I had sent. p.841-2 the composition of the Bishopthorpe suite which I still play. The march was played at their funeral. p.847 Dad is 74. p.854 Bruce's guitar exam. p.855 I wrote from Birmingham. This could have been a weekend when we sang at St Philip's cathedral. p.865 we both gave up singing in the chorus for a while to complete our Archbishops certificate in church music. For this we went to Heythrop college for the first time and had lectures from Tom Creagh-Fuller (he later became a priest). Very flamboyant we would get onto his favourite subject five minutes before we were due to finish e.g. Odo then he would sing old Catholic hymns loudly on the tube back to Victoria (if the floor could have opened..). He was very knowledgable and needles to say we both passed. The choir at Our Lady's were more nervous than I was about the exam when I had to direct them! The examiner was the director of music at St George's cathedral and she was very charming. The certificates hang in our dinging room and are signed by Cardinal Hume whom we met briefly. We had to visit various places - Liz went to the Adventists at Selhurst and the Streatham synagogue. p.871 Robin Milford pieces I had sent "Papa". p.875 I praised the Advent carols service choir and the Bishop! p.877 phone Dennis was working in Croydon I think at the outdoor shop. p.884 Christmas organ voluntaries and Dad remarks that the priest-in-charge appeared not to appreciate all my practice. I think this must be Monsignor John Moran. He had worked for the Catholic children's society and was sent to one of the biggest parishes in the diocese. His desk was always a muddle. He would get an envelope out and put my cheque in it. The best thing was that he did not interfere and left us to get on with it! Fr Peter Stodart was the curate and unusually succeeded the Monsignor. I was actually rather fond of him. In the end when he had to retire he was reluctant to leave the presbytery and moved into a flat. A bridal couple in the block said they kept an eye on him. He would go to his regulars for whisky. His funeral went really well but it suddenly hit me that I would never see him again. His favourite hymn was "Breathe on me breath of God". Fr Farmer no less complimented me on the music at that funeral - he said priest's funerals were usually abysmal!

Fr Peter and Mgr Moran

Peggy on left At the back Tony Potter and John Beers who composed some items for us

Ted in the middle with alto Kit Bradley and Mary Endacott, Ada Macdonald is at the back next to me.

Ralph Downes who died in 1993

Fr Farmer preached and remarked that the music was good! 

Mgr Moran died 1995

RSCM magazine

1987

Thanks from Fr Anthony

Vol 2 page 240 Christmas and a new photo of the family. p,244 1987 Michael Bourdeaux in Sydney. Anna Gabler died. She had organised an annual playing of the Klemperer recording of the St Matthew passion and we would sing the chorales. p.246 contact from Francis Albert Woodhouse in Victoria, British Columbia. p.247 Dennis joined St John Upper Norwood choir. p.248 60th anniversary service of the RSCM at the Albert Hall and we both sang. Cardinal Hume prayed during the anthems - it was wonderful to see that. Ronnie Jones came from Pretoria and Australia was represented. Dennis, Gwyneth, Paul and Neil were in the audience. Gillian Weir and Roy Massey were among the organists.

Lionel Dakers wrote to everyone  to tell us how much the Queen enjoyed it.

2 Dec Diamond jubilee evensong at the Abbey Nicholson singers directed by Michael Fleming and Martin How played Harris Faire is the heaven Stanford in C Te Deum

This means we sang at the 50th and 60th anniversary celebrations and the last service at Addington Palace. 

In November Liz celebrated her 40th birthday with a party at home

Photo shows

Mrs Barber, Joyce, Ethel at the party

Grace and K

p.249 the organ pipe which we now have presented on leaving Tasmania. page 253 about the people at the RSCM service at the hall. Ray Holland sang next to me. p,255 mention of us visiting Sydney the following year and swopping houses. Willoughby East rectory from mid-March 1988 to the end of April. page 257. and 262 and 263 video of the RSCM service. p.264 Louise First communion and Dennis beating the bounds of the Tower of London - quite an occasion and the guests were shepherded in for tea afterwards by a Warder with a huge axe! Dad mentions my red Philharmonia orchestra tie which I wore quite a lot! I think it was sponsored by Dunhill! 3 performances of the B minor mass with Giulini in Rome. Chorus masters Balatsch and Neumann. Soloists Elly Ameling, Anne Sofie van Otter, Thomas Moser, Andreas Schmidt

Bruce beating the bounds with St John's choirboys

28/6/87 Louise made her first communion

3 August Prom Gurrelieder with Jessye Norman and Pierre Boulez Andrew Greenwood was chorus master. The programme mentions the War requiem at the Opera House which was a tribute to Peter Pears. 

7 Nov Our Lady's choir took part in RSCM Southwark Diocesan festival at Southwark cathedral conducted by Lionel Dakers organist Andrew Lumsden. The Advent Carol service at Addiscombe started in darkness and included the Magnificat Sumsion in A.

The same month Sunday Dec 27th there was a nine lessons and carols at St Margaret's with Mick Elfred as priest in charge. The brass were Richard Riley, Roger Snewin, Cyril Birkbeck, Neville Squires and Nigel Irvine. Gwyneth and Roger helped form the choir. Roger was on the RSCM committee and played trumpet and organ at Lee. Richard was the son of a soprano in the chorus and a brilliant trumpeter. Midnight Mass at St Margaret's 1987 was a simpler affair with well-known carols and there was a christingle on Christmas Day.