Waynflete Singers Bayeux Tour 29 May to 1 June 2025
Dear Diary…
Thursday
The kingfisher-blue flash of our concert posters could be spotted in the Normandy-style windows, hotel lobbies and churches of Bayeux before the Wayns coach party even arrived on Thursday afternoon, tired but happy. That evening the entire touring party- including those who had travelled separately- all began the weekend by gathering for drinks around the pool of the Hotel de Brunville.
Friday
The day began with a visit to the Bayeux tapestry. A fascinating piece of history to which, of course, the Waynflete Singers have a connection: we are a part of the musical life of the cathedral built by the very man whose story is told in the tapestry.
The afternoon saw our rehearsal for Friday evening’s concert in beautiful Bayeux cathedral. We were to stand on the smooth stone steps to the altar, facing the magnificent Cavaillé-Coll gallery organ right at the opposite end of the nave- rehearsal communications between Andy and George had to be by phone! The Cathedral had a dreamy acoustic with a lot of natural light.
Andy on the phone to George
After the rehearsal we all went our various ways to forage for moule-frites or baguettes or crepes, regrouping in time for our concert at the very continental start-time of 8.30. And what do you know- an audience (in addition to our own travelling supporters) was already gathering! “Half an hour before our concert was due to begin, I saw several groups of people enter,” says our treasurer Kate Baker. “They were getting there early to secure a seat at the front! The pews filled and we ended up with a really good-sized, and really appreciative, audience...”
And so we performed to a full nave, with our audience growing even as the concert progressed. “I like to think the music acted as a magnet drawing more and more people in- they were standing at the back by the end,” says Kate. We were thrilled to receive a standing ovation from our audience at the concert’s end and performed Bogoroditse Devo as an encore.
Saturday
We arrived at the American Cemetery with no fixed programme or time, just an arrangement to sing something appropriate with details to be sorted when we arrived. Our big concert in the cathedral was done now, this was just a small additional performance which we’d do before the coach trip to Caen in the afternoon.
That, at least, is what a lot of us were thinking, until we began walking through the immaculate Cemetery grounds and the significance, the history and the poignancy of that beautiful place began sinking deeply in. We gathered at the steps of the memorial, with the bronze sculpture “The Spirit of American Youth Rising From the Waves” reaching for the sky before us and a seemingly infinite number of rows of white graves stretching towards the distant trees behind us (the actual number of graves is well in excess of 9000). A guide from the Cemetery welcomed us, telling us how the land on which the Cemetery stands was given by France to America in perpetuity, and would be kept and maintained “forever, and to perfection”. She told us how the bodies of the unnamed and unknown were still being found, even now; that the first wave of the assault onto Omaha Beach just below the cemetery walls saw a casualty rate of 90%; of the young man whose body was found and identified as recently in 2018 and who was buried, in the cemetery, with his twin brother.
We stood on the steps of the colonnade and sang the small number of songs which Andy had tastefully chosen. Some of the many visitors to the cemetery stopped to watch and listen, but there was no huge audience. No rapturous ovation. No perfect acoustic. And yet just to place our voices and our music into the atmosphere of that incredible place was surely one of the most poignant and beautiful experiences a choir could have the privilege of experiencing.
Deep breath. And then- time for a happy coach trip to Caen, before our final dinner at the Hotel de Brunville. Heartfelt and grateful thanks were given to our wonderful organising committee- Sarah Jones, Helen Longworth, Kate Baker, Rosemarie Roberts, Daniel Benton, Jane Kennedy and Anthony Latham- as well as to George and Andy, before we finished by filling the evening air with a passionate rendition of Bogoroditse Devo, as per Wayns’ tradition.
And the reviews are in…
As well as all expressing their ENORMOUS gratitude to the organising committee, this is what some of our members said about the trip:
“What a blast we’ve had! Thank you everyone for a very special time.” Geraldine Eves
“A fantastic and memorable weekend” Jo Pankhurst
“Wonderful time was had by all and it went without a hitch” Kate Spencer
“Brilliant weekend” Duncan Eves
“A really special, wonderful trip. Superbly organised” Maddy Thompson
“Loved my first Wayns Tour” Rachel Childs
“Thanks for coming everyone. Great singing in great company” Daniel Benton, organising committee
“So lovely to have got to know you all better!” Kim Lampard
“What a wonderful tour and particularly at a time remembering the Normandy Landings” Stephanie Gretton
“Lots of lovely memories and singing” Lynda Beckwith
“The hard work of the organisers paid off- it was a brilliant weekend…Where next?!” Nick Caiger
“A fabulous weekend…lots of happy memories” Sue Sheridan
“A hugely enjoyable trip” Martin Tomsett
“The whole trip ran seamlessly from start to finish. Thank you so much to the team for putting it together and thank you to everyone for being such great company. We are a fabulous bunch!” Caroline Wainwright
“I enjoyed it enormously… It was really good catching up with old friends and meeting new ones” Clare Gardner
“I thought Bayeux was delightful…such an interesting location. And all the places picked to visit were stunning too.” Liz Hake
“All I will say is: it was a great example of teamwork, and great to be part of such an amazing team. Thank you all for your wonderful company” Anthony Latham, organising committee
“At the going down of the sun, and in the morning, we will remember! What an amazing trip-so poignant to be singing out over so many fallen at the American Memorial and earlier in the Cathedral…Great to have had down time with fellow singers and your supporters “building community” Richard Steedman
“My first trip with the Wayns, and what a great few days it was! I am truly thankful for all the hard work put in to make it happen.” Fiona Thornton
“The team worked so [well] together and it turned out we had helpful, complementary skills…You were all such an easy group too, determined to have a great trip and ignore any hiccoughs.” Rosemarie Roberts, organising committee
“Just the best few days” Susan Rees
“Singing in the cathedral was enough of a highlight on its own to have justified the visit, but then the American Cemetery, seeing the Tapestry, all the opportunities for socialising…It was particularly memorable being out there during the buildup to the D-Day anniversary” Roland Matthews
“We so appreciated your support and especially your company- some have now been on all trips- it is such an uplifting bonus! Many, many thanks for joining the party...” (speaking of our wonderful supporters) Helen Longworth, organising committee
“It was great to spend time socialising with everyone” Sarah Delaney
“I so enjoyed all aspects: musical, historical, social, English and French…even the roll calls!” Catharine Tucker
“A great team effort making a highly enjoyable trip” Howard Nattrass
“The Wayns trip to Bayeux was magical. For me, the core was such beautiful music…led by such sensitivity by Andy. Singing this in those two such historic locations, with the history being so close to major issues in the world today, gave me so much on which to reflect. And having this surrounded by such a large group of friends, many new…” Chris Town
“Thank you all for being such brilliant and cooperative companions which contributed to the success of our moving tour of Normandy at such a poignant time. It was super to get to know people in different choir sections….George’s organ solos were wonderful. Staying in the centre of Bayeux was like being in the middle of a film set for a medieval drama!” Jane Kennedy, organising committee
And finally, this from our concert manager Veronica Shaw
“How to pack multiple experiences into the shortest possible time:
Walking through Winchester as the dawn is breaking, with only the birds for company
Multiple stimulating conversations with people, many of whom you have never spoken to before
The coincidences of finding someone who went to the same school as me and another whose family went through similar trauma to mine
Laughter, more laughter and yet more laughter
Galettes, crepes, mussels, strong cheese and pistachio ice-cream - all delicious
Crisp white wine, served properly chilled
Navigating two flights of spiral staircase at the Air BnB after the above - not easy
Being hit in the solar plexus on arrival at the American War memorial
Tears, more tears and yet more tears
Gratitude beyond measure both there and at the British War memorial at the sacrifice of all those young people
Awe at the splendour of Bayeux Cathedral and the engineering at Arromanches
And of course the joy of making glorious music in two such special places with special people
Four days? Really?”
You can watch the iMovie of our trip here: