The weeks of tortuous arrangements involving the exchange of countless telegrams, telephone calls and letters between Monoux and the Norwegian educational authorities culminated in the departure of twenty three Monoux choristers, their conductor and his briefcase. From the latter (which seemed after a time to have developed it's own personality) issued forth a stream of most unlikely-looking tickets, passports and various currencies, positively guaranteed to take us safely to Oslo; so they did.

The journey was the first of many revelations. From the train, on which we lived for 27 hours, we saw a somewhat uninteresting Belgium, slept through Germany, and then experienced the gradual change from the modelled, pastel-shaded landscape of Denmarkand part of Sweden to the darker-hued, pine-covered rolling slopes of Bergman's country that preludes Norway. Thus we arrived, so we are told, to the midnight rain of Oslo.

Czechoslovakia 1966

What one expects to find on one's first visit to a Communist country is strongly influenced by what daily paper one reads, and so we all had different ideas as to what Czechoslovakia would be like. However I think we were all surprised to find how little the Communist influence was in evidence. The only obvious signs were the involved and rigorous checking of passports and visas on the border, and the fact that the only English newspaper available was the Morning Star.
Before we left we were told that Czech scenery was very similar to Switzerland. When we got there we were assured that there were very beautiful mountains somewhere where we weren't; however the scenery we saw was for the most part extremely boring. This was perhaps emphasised by the effect of the Czech tourist industry's comparative infancy; they tend to exaggerate wildly about their sights, and you are invariably disappointed when you see the actual thing. Nevertheless the architecture especially was often fascinating.
On arrival in Prague, after nearly two days' travelling, we were driven to an International Youth Centre which, visually, strongly resembled a prison. However its rules were reasonable, far laxer, for example, than the normal Youth Hostel, and our stay there was quite pleasant. All other accommodation was in hotels, which were, comparatively, superb. Once we were settled in, every effort was made to entertain us, we were taken on sight-seeing tours, excursions, and once even to the theatre. There were no concerts in this part of the holiday, but we rehearsed every day.
Saturday, August 27th, was one of the most hectic days I have ever experienced. We got up at 4.30, had breakfast, and missed our train to Brno. We caught the next train three hours later, and finally arrived at Brno at 1.00 p.m. We dashed to our hotel, ate about half a meal, and were rushed to a small hall where, without any sort of rehearsal, we gave a lecture-recital to an audience of Czech musicians, which included singers from the Brno Opera, Professors from the Brno Conservatoire, composers and conductors. This appreciative group received us warmly, and were fascinated by our style of singing, completely different from that of their own Children's Choirs. After this we went to the Beseda Hall and rehearsed our complete concert, to be given that evening, and including both secular and sacred items, and the third act of "Tales of Hoffmann", which, of course, we had produced at school at the end of last term. The stage was curtainless, and utterly dissimilar to the school stage; this made the rehearsal rather disorganised as far as the opera was concerned.
The actual concert started with the Brno Children's Choir, who were very good, though their singing style was almost the complete antithesis of ours. The rest of the concert was sung by the Monoux choir alone. The audience, which was huge and extremely attentive, seemed to like our sacred items, and was very impressed by the opera. And after the secular items, the last part of the concert, it simply went wild, we had to do two or three encores, and finally just walked out, too tired to do anything else, we had been singing on and off for about seven hours. After the concert we met the Brno Choir, who were very friendly, and gave us gifts. Eventually we somehow got back to the hotel and fell into our beds.
The following day we were taken on a guided tour of Brno. This fell very flat, since no transport was provided, we had to walk everywhere, and our guide knew nothing whatever about the town and in any case could not speak English. However during our stay in Brno other excursions and entertainments were organised, which were far more successful.
On arriving back in Prague we began to prepare for our open-air concert in the Ledeburg Gardens, beneath Prague Castle. This took the same form as the Brno concert, with, of course, the Prague Children's Choir taking the first part. We ended up, however, by singing with the Prague Choir two folk-songs, one Czech, one English. The audience did not seem to be as enthusiastic as before, but this may simply have been the effect of being in the open air. The concert was again very well sung, and we all enjoyed it tremendously.
The rest of our time in Prague was more or less our own, for buying presents and so on. On Friday, September 2nd, we left Prague to return to England.
Although we did only three concerts proper, this trip was vocally the most strenuous, and the most rewarding, so far. We rehearsed hard, and we sang wherever possible, giving, for example, an impromptu little recital whenever we happened to wander into some cathedral. We also recorded items for broadcasting on both Prague and Brno radio services. In most ways, in fact, this was the best trip the choir has had so far. The difficulties involved in arranging this trip were, of course, far greater even than the previous trips; Mr. Moffatt deserves the utmost praise for bringing it off while still retaining his sanity and good humour. This we willingly give him, together with our most grateful thanks. We fervently hope that next year's trip to Hungary will be as enjoyable as this year's was; we can wish for no more.
P. J. Freshney

choir activities 1967

On November 19th, the School choir made a return visit to Guildford, to sing Evensong in the Cathedral. Mr. Barry Rose, a Monoux Old Boy now organist and choirmaster at Guildford, accompanied us in the service-"Watson in E", and the anthem "O Lord the maker of all things" by John Joubert. The choir, although not on its best form, was again invited to return, and hoped to do so in June.
Our thanks go to Mr. Moffatt who has spent a considerable time training and rehearsing the choir, a task now made especially difficult by the comparative youth of its ranks.
Twice last term, the choir assembled to record items for London's International Audio Fair. The first session was unsuccesful for a number of reasons, but the second session succeeded both musically and technically, and as a result the choir was heard singing the Moravian Folk Song, "Vy Klacania" and Roger Wagner's arrangement of "Swing Low, Sweet Chariot".
The recording was made in an advanced form of stereophonic sound, called "Ambiophony". This is a method of recording sound in large buildings, which simulates the acoustics of the original environments, thus achieving a remarkable clarity.
The people concerned in making the tape intend to return in the near future to record an E,P. disc of the choir.
G. Carpenter, SG.

This term has been a very successful one for the Choir, although it has not given any public concerts.
Early in the term we learnt that the Choir was being broadcast on Budapest Radio following a recording it had made there just before it left. Unfortunately, only one person was able to receive the programme, and the reception, we are told, was disappointing, owing to other stations on the same wavelength. More positively, the Choir made the first of two recordings for a record it had long planned to produce. Both were musically successful, but the first had to be scrapped as the microphone was deficient. The second recording was made because of that. The Choir sang three- items (the fourth, "Swing Low Sweet Chariot", had been recorded last term)- "Ave Verum Corpus" by Byrd, "Sing We and Chant It" (a well-known "Fa-La" by Morley), and "Jesus Christ The Apple Tree", a carol from the newly published "Cambridge Hymnal", arranged by Elizabeth Maconchy. This record is expected to be on sale very soon.
Another recording date was fixed soon after this one, but this time for the B.B.C. programme "Let The Peoples Sing", an International Choral Competition. Here we were lucky enough to be picked to represent the whole of the South-East Region of England, by a panel of judges which included David Wilcox, the choirmaster of the King's College Choir, Cambridge. As a result, in January, the Choir will be heard singing four items : "Jesus Christ The Apple Tree", and "Ave Verum" as before, Percy Grainger's arrangement of "Brigg Fair" with David Chatterton as tenor soloist), and the late Sir Malcalm Sargent's arrangement of "All God's Chillun".
As usual, our thanks go to Mr. Moffatt for giving up four of his five lunch times and all of his evenings to turn the choir into something worth listening to.
G. Carpenter, 6iM

Hungary 1967

The announcement of the possibility that the choir would have to travel to Dover by road was met with shrill wails from the trebles and some low groans from the tenors and basses. The reason for this decision was the proposed one-day strike on the Southern Region which coincided with our departure date. Despite this, the 29 strong choir including Mr. Peter Chapman set off with its director, Mr. Moffatt and his widely travelled briefcase (veteran of all four campaigns) on that bright morning of August 21st only fifteen minutes behind schedule. Throughout the journey to Victoria no-one could quite believe that he had arisen and gone to School in a joyful manner so early on a dreaded Monday morning. Although the strike was called off, the choir was still obliged to travel down to the coast by coach. Apart from the time taken, this also entailed a longer walk to passport control which is situated at one end of the platform at Dover Marine. It was waiting at this point that the junior choristers made wild speculations as to the fearsome nature of Customs and Excise Officers, the more experienced travellers doing little to dispel these ideas as familiar sights brought back memories of past journeys.
Once aboard the crowded boat the baggage was methodically stacked under the guidance of the ever practical Mr. Chapman before the choir was allowed to disperse. On docking at Ostend the party disembarked and after passing through the Belgian passport control, boarded the train to Vienna where we were to change trains on the following morning. The "Coil Spring" sensation was identified by those who had been on last year's trip as soon as the Budapest bound train left Vienna. At the border we were joined by a guide, a pretty Hungarian University student who was to see to the welfare of all the members of the choir. Surprisingly she remained sane, taking all the idiosyncrasies of the English in her stride. Before the train arrived at Budapest she issued everyone with a detailed map of the two cities.
Once out of the station, Barbara, as the guide was called, took us to a waiting bus which conveyed the choir and its luggage to a student hotel which, from the outside looked worse than the grim sight of Prague's hostel but the rooms were later compared with those at the Hotel Metronol in Brno. Even though we were tired and dusty after over 30 hours of travel, we were expected to attend our first social function on the evening of our arrival. This was a meeting with a youth choir similar in composition to our own except for the trebles and altos which were sopranos and contraltos. The standard of their singing was extremely high and it was a pity that we had to sing at all, unrehearsed as we were. The quality of our singing was not as bad as one would have supposed though to us it was below standard. To round off our programme we sang Vy Klaconia, a Czech folk song, but we found later, when conversing with the choir, that the Hungarians were not particularly friendly towards the Czechs. It was thought best, therefore, to omit it from future concerts.
We had breakfast at the same restaurant at which we had been served dinner on the preceding evening, as the dining hall of the hotel could not be used! After this meal we were allowed to do as we pleased for the remainder of the morning. At twelve we reassembled and were taken, by Barbara, to a restaurant on the Pest side of the Danube, for lunch, after which we were taken on a sightseeing tour around Buda and Pest. This was rounded off with a drive up to the highest point of the city, a dominating hill on which stood a tall war memorial, backed by the hazy blue Buda Hills. Many just stood in wonder and gazed as if hypnotised at a sight that nothing short of actual experience could do justice to. The more practical frantically jabbed shutter buttons in an impossible effort to capture it. With great reluctance we tore ourselves away to be taken down to our restaurant for dinner. On the following day Barbara took us on an excursion to the Buda Hills, travelling on the Pioneer Railway which, apart from the engineer, was staffed entirely by young people. We were given lunch in a restaurant at the top, after which we had a little time to examine some stalls. Many of the juniors won or bought paper balls stuffed with wood shavings and bound with cotton to which were attached lengths of elastic. These they called "Danglies". These simply-made toys pleased every owner, and even the seniors and Peter Chapman investigated, in the interests of science of course, the strange behaviour of these "Danglies".
We returned to Buda via the cogwheel railway and took a train to the hotel. On Friday 24th the bus took us to Salgotorjen where we were spoilt in a recently opened luxury hotel, the Hotel Karoncs. We were introduced to a girls' choir on Saturday, in a concert hall twenty yards from the hotel. Unfortunately they sang only one song which was regularly punctured with giggling, and in return they asked to see a performance of Papageno which had been produced, at the end of last term, by the opera group. When this was over the choristers were entertained by their hostesses while Mr. Moffat conversed, through Barbara, with reporters and musicians about. the choir and music in English schools. Eventually we were able to get back to the Hotel and rest as we had a full day ahead.
On Sunday we participated in a concert at a village 24 kilometres front Salgotarjen. When we arrived we were shown into the auditorium which was so full of people that many were already standing, crowded at the back and in the aisles. On stage we performed a selection of secular items, every one being followed by thunderous applause. After several curtain calls the cast of Papageno hastily changed and applied make-up while some of the Hungarians danced. When all was ready the only available piano was dragged into a suitable position. It was, as we had feared, out of tune, and Mr. Moffat found that it was also too short when he attempted to play non-existant keys. Before we returned to Salgotarjen everyone was given a badge as a souvenir and some were supplied with water melon as fast as they could eat it. We all agreed that singing to a hall filled with a sympathetic audience was indeed a memorable experience.
On Monday afternoon we visited a glass factory to perform a short concert. Logical deductions made by Mr. Peter Chaptnan led many to believe that they would be able to purchase glassware at reasonable prices. This was not so and the only part of the factory that we saw was the stage of the concert hall. The quality of the concert was of the required standard. A barbecue had been arranged by the girls' choir for that evening but owing to the inclement weather this was abandoned and the evening was spent in the large concert hall by the Hotel. Before we set off for Verocze we were all given an embroidered book-mark by our friends who organised our concerts while we stayed at Salgotarjen.
At Verocze we stayed in a youth camp which was vastly different from the luxury of the Hotel Karoncs where many rooms had their own bathroom and toilet. In the camp there were six people to a chalet little bigger than a couchette and the washing facilities and lavatories were situated at one end of the camp. There was, however, a wide range of recreational activities such a football, volleyball, table tennis, swimming and riding. Meals were adequate and the system of serving resembled that of a glorified Lyons' teashop. On Thursday, August 31st, we took part in an international competition which we succeeded in winning. The sponsors must have heard us practising as 60 bars of chocolate were available for distribution on the announcement of our victory.
The bus took us back to Budapest on Friday and most of the choir seemed pleased to be back in the familiar surroundings of the Student Hotel, the dining hall of which was now operational. The following day we made a recording for Budapest Radio at their studios, as well as an interview taped by a reporter. At the studio we met the Budapest Children's Choir who were runnersup in their class in the B.B.C.'s "Let the People Sing" competition last year. They receive a considerable amount of money from the Government which enables them to visit two countries in a year, and we learnt that this year they had already been to Japan and America. The recording which we made was a selection of items from different types of music and some of Papageno. We took a late lunch because of this, after which we went shopping for food and drink to be consumed on the return journey. On the way back, the police at railway stations made it quite clear that photographs were not to be taken. This had been discovered earlier by a certain choir member who was almost chased down the road by a policeman after successfully attempting to photograph the police headquarters.
The Channel crossing was calm and at Dover Mr. Moffat and the choir had a genial conversation with the customs officer who, while checking our list, related tales of his latest confiscations. When we were safely seated in the train we discovered that the porter with our cases had been lost and unfortunately could not be found before the train departed. Mr. Chapman saw that it was put aboard the next train, thus delaying dispersal from Victoria by only twenty minutes.
Although we rehearsed on every day that we were able, it was found that the concerts were not as satisfying as those of last year, which tended to be more formal and organised. The Choir extends its grateful thanks to the Parents' Association for its financial support, the Headmaster who worked hard to acquire for us additional financial aid and especially to its director, Mr. Moffatt who has worked hard with us throughout the year to raise the standard to an extent that made a trip abroad worthwhile. We sincerely hope that the trip to Poland, proposed for next summer, will be as enjoyable as this one.
R. Phillips, 6iM

Poland 1968

Plans for another trip to Eastern Europe began to materialise despite the view of even the most optimistic optimist that the Czechoslovakian situation was rapidly coming to a head. Tangible evidence of almost a year of hard work on the part of Mr. Moffatt was available outside School at nine o'clock on Tuesday 20th August, when parents and friends looked on as the group of twenty-eight choristers, its conductor and Mr. Peter Chapman, who once again was able to accompany us, stowed itself and its luggage into the waiting bus which conveyed it to Victoria.
Once at Dover, after an uneventful train journey, the usual passport rituals were performed and the Channel boat boarded. We were able eventually, to stack our luggage on the after hatch in the usual fashion before the ancient rites of Channel crossing were observed. We disembarked at Ostend without great difficulty and once through Belgian Passport Control the correct platform was located.
As we moved down the train an official enquired about our East German transit visas, necessary to enable us to cross the border. These documents had been overlooked by the travel agent and had to be purchased at the station. Apart from this all went smoothly and we boarded the Ostend-Moscow express in which we were to live for the next twenty-four hours.
Everyone was up by eight-fifteen the following morning to be sure of seeing Berlin. It was at this time that the conductor informed us that we had just crossed the border in time as the Russians had entered Czechoslovakia. The seriousness of this was not known to us until our return, as state-controlled papers said very little and the information that we received was gleaned from anyone who spoke a little English. On the journey from Berlin to Warsaw at least five military trains were seen including a complete squadron of tanks. A road convoy was also sighted as lorry after lorry headed towards the East German frontier.
We could not believe that we had arrived in Warsaw because the station, at which the guard ordered us onto the platform, seemed a considerable distance from the city. There appeared, however, a small reception committee consisting of our official guide, who remained with us throughout our stay in Poland, and two female members of the Warsaw University Choir. When greetings had been exchanged and the flower given (a custom we have found common in Eastern Europe) we were led to a bus which took us to the "Riviera" student hotel.
By the time registration formalities had been completed, there was very little time to do anything that evening and we spent our time unpacking and attempting to assess the effects of the act of Russian Imperialism. The following morning we were shown films on Poland and Warsaw in various languages (one of which was English) in the Cinema/Theatre of "Riviera". One of these showed the full extent of the devastation of that ancient city at the hands of the Germans during the last war. When the film show was over we were able to fit a much needed rehearsal into our programme as we were to record for Polish Radio on the afternoon of the following day.
After lunch we were joined by a Warsaw guide who escorted us around the city. It was on this excursion that the sentence "This was destroyed by the Germans and reconstructed" was used many times as it applied to almost every building and monument that we viewed, one of the exceptions being that commemorating the Warsaw Ghetto.
On Friday morning a cruise on the Vistula had been arranged, after which we were able to return to "Riviera" and rehearse to prepare for the recording session. The singing at this was technically at our usual standard but a large studio, with no audience, can destroy what is left of a choir's spirit after being unsettled by two days of tiring travel followed by little else but official sightseeing and rehearsing.
The morning after, we were obliged to go on another official excursion to the Palace of Culture where visitors could look out over the city from an open balcony on the thirtieth floor. This visit was comparatively short and afterwards we were allowed some free time until lunch. After the meal we were taken to Chopin's birthplace which was situated fifty-four kilometres from Warsaw. The grounds surrounding the house abounded in wild life including red squirrels and the building too was of interest, but many were disappointed in not finding Chopin's first piano within. On leaving the estate there was a brief pause while ice-creams and postcards were obtained at a kiosk before our bus took us back to the hotel in time to change and have a meal before performing in front of our first Polish audience.
The concert was put on in the theatre of "Riviera" and although it was not full, it became obvious that the audience were both enthusiastic and appreciative. The serious religious items were followed by a humorous trio from the Marriage of Figaro and rounded off by the folk songs and negro spirituals. The applause was so great that it seemed as if it would never subside and, although it abated while a gift of flowers were presented, it recurred and did not stop until every chorister had disappeared. After this a small group were interviewed by a reporter from Polish Radio, which she recorded on tape, after which we had the warm Polish evening to ourselves.
The following morning we went on another organised visit to the "Palace of the Bath" after which we listened to an open air piano concert. In order to view the palace we had to put on soft bottomed over-shoes to prevent damage to the exquisitely beautiful floors in wood and marble. At the end of the concert we left the park and returned to "Riviera" for the last time.
After a train journey of over four hours an exhausted choir reached Cracow one day ahead of schedule to find that our bus had just broken down. Within ten minutes we were on our way and were soon awaiting room allocation at our hotel. The whole of the next day was taken up by a visit to the Totra mountains. We were taken to a small town called Zokopane, a name which is also used to describe the style of house construction in that area, in a bus which already contained a party of East Germans who were holidaying in Zokopane. On completing a comparatively brief official sightseeing tour we were informed that we could have "free time" until dinner (in forty-five minutes). While a good meal was being digested we visited "the eye of the sea" a large, deep lake surrounded by towering Mountains which was once believed to have a subterranean outlet to the ocean.
When breakfast had been completed on Tuesday we went by public transport to the Cracow Castle which overlooks the Vistula. We sang in the courtyard while the guide attended to formalities after which we were escorted around the castle. When we had refreshed ourselves we were taken into the Cathedral and performed two religious pieces extremely well, probably because we felt "at home" in such a building as well as the acoustics being conducive to good singing. While we were there we ascended the belfry and examined the largest bell in Cracow. The party was then led past the old town square and the statue of Adam Michiewitz (one of the focal points in the recent student demonstrations) to St. Mary's Church where we heard the famous trumpeter sound his ever unfinished tune.
We had lunch at three o'clock and decided upon a two-and-a-half hour rehearsal that evening. There was free time on Wednesday afternoon but on that evening we performed successfully in a student club. This included most of our secular programme and again the audience was most enthusiastic. Despite the peculiar surroundings and conditions the choir sang very well and the items were far better than had been previously.
The next morning we visited a salt mine or at least the oldest part which is no longer worked. By climbing down seemingly interminable wooden steps the initial descent was achieved and a guide pointed out the interesting features as we descended further through vaulted caverns used as miner's chapels with statues carved in the salt rock, over subterranean lakes until we eventually reached our goal-the tea bar at minus six hundred feet.
After lunch we travelled again by train to Poznan but because of double booking the journey was not as comfortable as it might have been, but the situation was alleviated by the fact that half our carriage was a buffet car. The following morning we were taken on yet another official sightseeing tour, this time on foot and by public transport, which, if it had not been for the leisurely pace we enforced upon it, would have been unendurable.
During our stay in Poznan the guide attempted to arrange a public concert for us in addition to our scheduled private one. This was unsuccessful and despite the fact that, comparatively, we had spent a great deal of time rehearsing our adaption of "The Marriage of Figaro" which we produced as part of our Summer Concert at the end of last term, eventually we were able only to put it on before members of the Poznan choir within hours of our departure.
Preceding this was our visit on Sunday to a castle and some large old oaks. The highlight of the day undoubtedly was lunch, which consisted of a mug of pink soup, the colour of calomine lotion, with a taste most objectionable to the English palate, and a large portion of chicken served with lettuce.
On Monday morning we performed at the Poznan Palace of Culture to an audience of schoolchildren and teachers. The hall was acoustically bad and the choir adjusted quickly and effectively to one of the worst situations ever to be encountered. The opera was then produced in another room for the benefit of the Poznan Choir. The officials of the Poznan Choir were impressed by the general standard of our singing and particularly by the opera. It amazed them when they found out that we did not come from a specialist music college from which their choir members are drawn. They extended us an invitation to participate in the Poznan's Festival next May, the first British choir to be asked to do so.
From Poznan we waved goodbye to our guide and settled down into First-Class seating accommodation (once army officials had vacated them at the border) and the journey passed quickly. We had First-Class tickets, too, for the Channel ferry and DoverVictoria train which enabled us to travel as human beings with much more space. At Dover there was the usual nervous apprehension as the Customs Officer examined the list and for the first time in five trips that terrifying figure called a first-former to come forward. When the spelling mistake had been pointed out and the excise man satisfied that the lad could spell "bottle" correctly we were escorted, this time by an Englishman, to our waiting train. At Victoria the trip had finished as it had begun as the party was received by its parents and friends as it fell out of the train with its much heavier luggage.
The choir owes its grateful thanks to many benefactors but especially to Mr. Moffatt without whose administrative ability these trips would be impossible, and without whose personality and musical talents the choir would not exist at its present high standard, and the headmaster who worked hard to ease the financial burden thus making the cost to individuals much lower.
There is a possibility that the choir will remain intact for at least another summer and although we do not as yet have any definite aim, Russia or America are not above consideration.
R. Phillips. 6ii M.

Russia 1969

On the sunny but blustery morning of 22nd August the Choir began to assemble for the sixth time in its history, to venture from England's shores in search of more appreciative audiences. The pattern of this trip differed from previous ones in that the coach which departed from school at 12.35 did not go to Victoria but instead headed east to the crane-crowded concrete of Tilbury docks.
At the docks, which the coach driver eventually found, the rain began to fall as the luggage was being passed out and shelter was sought in the buffet until embarkation. The vessel which, after certain formalities, we were allowed to board was the Motor Ship Ulyanova, one of the fastest boats operating for the Baltic Steamship Co. though certainly not one of the largest. Our "C" class accommodation was far better than it sounds and apart from headaches caused by sitting up too quickly in bunks, there was no cause for complaint.
Unfortunately, that evening the swell grew worse and by morning many choristers suffered from a well-known mariners' malady. Our most seasoned traveller spent three hours with his head over a bucket while the others found the ship's rail a useful prop. The Purser confessed that it was the worst weather they had encountered this year. By afternoon tea, at 4 p.m., sufferers' systems were returning to near normality and food was once again a permissible topic of conversation. That evening the black coast of Denmark was sighted.
At 9 the following morning M.S. Ulyanova sailed past Copenhagen where six years ago the Monoux pioneer choir had broken its journey to Norway by breakfasting, in the railway station.
Now the choristers prepared for breakfast to fortify themselves before the inevitable practice which followed now that everyone was feeling much better.
That evening we appeared in a talent show which, we were told, always occurs on the last night before the ship reaches Helsinki, where many passengers disembark. In fact there were very few continuing to Leningrad but one worthy of note was Alfie Bass, who was taking a holiday with his family. His young son, Julian, was delighted to have the company of so many boys of his own age group. During the night of the 24th we passed through a time zone, losing an hour's sleep.
As the sea was calm on the 25th a rehearsal occurred at 11 o'clock to put most of the pieces in reasonable condition. The rest of the day passed uneventfully until the boat threaded its way through many small islands as it neared Helsinki. A treble heard an American woman say typically to her companion in a heavy drawl, "Oh! What beautiful islands ; I wonder if they're for sale."
We disembarked at Helsinki to look around the town but we had difficulty finding a restaurant where they would accept sterling. From what we say, Helsinki did not have the life of our own Capital and seemed to reflect the temperament of the Finnish people we had met. On arriving back at the ship we found that time had advanced yet another hour so a further hour of sleep was written off. The following day the ship seemed to be exclusively populated by the choir and it was not until disembarkation that other passengers revealed their existence.
The sky was leaden grey as we approached the large port of Peter the Great and the flat marshland on which it is built only showed us the depressing silhouette of its dockland. As we neared port, some of the more daring photographers, with suitable lookouts, filmed the Russian Baltic fleet. By then the crew had taken all of the luggage up on deck. When we docked this was loaded into a wire basket and taken directly to customs while we were detained on board for passport formalities. In the customs shed they seemed intent on searching every boy, going through magazines and copies of the "Radio Times" thoroughly for hidden documents. Finally, when it was made clear that we were a travelling boys' choir they only troubled with currency declarations and we were allowed to proceed to our guide, who had two buses to take the party and its luggage to Dyuny, a popular holiday resort on the Gulf of Finland. The journey that night took almost an hour but we once did it in 27 minutes. It depended on the recklessness of the driver.
The accommodation at Dyuny was excellent, two in each room with comfortable beds and a balcony. Tall trees surrounded the resort and the beach was only 150 yards away. At 8.30 the following morning we were taken by Olga, the guide, to breakfast. It was discovered that she had only been studying English a short while yet she escorted us competently to all the sights and answered even ridiculous questions most fully.
As usual the sightseeing, which our east European friends seem to glory in and be able to organise better than anyone else, began immediately after breakfast. We were taken across the River Neva to the statue of Peter the Great who, from his horse trampling the dragon, gazes across at the original fortress which he had constructed at the expense of 200,000 men which is now dominated by the gilt spire of the Cathedral of St. Peter and St. Paul. From here we visited St. Basil's Cathedral before proceeding to the Baltika Restaurant, via the Winter Palace. After lunch the Aurora, the battle-cruiser whose forward gun was fired to signal the start of the revolution, was boarded and photographed. We were taken to a House of Friendship where a film on the reconstruction of Leningrad and its art treasures, after its long seige and destruction at the hands of the Germans, was shown. However, some of the choristers had already seen this film when it was shown aboard the Ulyanova but the extent of the restoration and the craftsmanship involved never ceased to astound us. In preparation for a concert on the following day, that evening was taken up by a rehearsal.
When we had breakfasted at the same time on the morning of the 28th, our bus delivered us outside the Winter Palace. The buildings which were the Winter Palace have been turned into museums which are referred to collectively as the Hermitage. Unfortunately we were unable to see the entire group as that could have easily have taken months and even the few major ones we did see had to be rushed through at great speed so there was little time to dwell on individual exhibits such as a solid silver tomb weighing over two tons or fully appreciate the Breu, Rembrandts and Renoirs. All we could hope to do was to gain a general impression. At one stage in the tour we stopped and sang the slow-moving madrigal "Lay a Garland" and within seconds a large chamber we had selected was filled with an audience which seemed disappointed that we did not continue. Time did not permit it.
The bus was waiting as we emerged from the Baltika and a little time was spent visiting the Cathedral in Peter the Great's old fortress. We managed to sing several religious pieces in this building which houses the tombs of many Russian Tsars including Peter. We were then taken to the Gardens in which was the concert hall where a speedy rehearsal was needed before our performance. The audience seemed fair considering that the concert had been arranged only two days before and the posters had only been displayed since that morning.
Our excursion on the next day was to the Pushkin Palace. This magnificent building with its gilt onion-shaped domes in beautifully wooded grounds was breathtaking. It was, naturally, still under reconstruction as it had been maliciously destroyed by the Germans when their looting was complete. The masterful job done in restoring this is impossible to describe without going into some detail, but the original craftsmen would have found it extremely difficult to fault the work now available to public inspection. We managed to sing in the chapel there and upon leaving were asked by the resident guides to sing more. As time permitted we obliged and it was plain that our audience were deeply moved.
For the last time we dined at the Baltika and then returned to Dyuny to prepare for our concert at that resort which had again been arranged at short notice. Yet to a full audience we performed our choir pieces and "The Bear," Walton's operatic version of Chekov's play which was well received considering that it had to be put over more on the acting than the incomprehensible singing. After this we were a little surprised to find that one of the major composers to the Kirov Opera and Ballet, Dimitri Tolstoy, had been listening. He showed great interest in the work of the choir and, like many of the musicians we have spoken to, while abroad, he could hardly believe that we did not attend a college of music but only a general school. To dispel all rumours he is not a relation of Leo Tolstoy the poet, but his father was a historian renowned for a Trilogy on Peter the Great. At the end of yet another exhausting day the Monoux Choir retired to their beds. Most people looked forward to their journey in a hydrofoil to Petrodvorets, Peter the Great's country residence, whose innumerable fountains were supplied with sufficient water under pressure from underground springs, enabling them to be in operation for ten hours out of every twenty-four. We were unfortunate in that the heavy rain which greeted us soon after disembarkation soaked everyone, quite literally, to the skin and prevented what would have been an enjoyable tour of the fountains and surrounding woodlands from taking place before dinner. The rain did not cease until forty minutes after dinner (when appropriate sacrifices had been made to our resident weather-god "Bert Ford" by younger members of the party). The fountains we saw were varied from beautiful gilt statues to artificial trees and flowers. What delighted everyone were the trick fountains designed by Peter the Great (who had a reputation for such humour). Many were surprised by them and their often inexplicable functioning. It is perhaps excusable to be caught by a trick fountain but when an over-confident optimist slipped into a plain shallow fountain, he found it extremely embarrassing. The only injury he suffered, however, was to his ego.
That night we packed, said our goodbyes and left Dyuny for the last time in our two buses and at the station boarded the "Red Arrow" to Moscow, which left on time at 24.00.
On arrival in sunny Moscow at 08.30 two buses conveyed us to the Hotel Ostankino. The telephones and radios supplied in every room were examined by the more suspicious (i.e. addicts to Ian Fleming) for any concealed microphones, before going to breakfast. Sightseeing commenced almost immediately afterwards. Apart from the Kremlin (the old city of Moscow) and Red Square, the Russian Capital was a little disappointing after Leningrad.
The museums within the Kremlin, visited on the day after our arrival, were of particular interest yet the tight schedule did not permit us long at any one exhibit and we did not have long at the cathedrals within the Kremlin walls. We were even refused permission to sing. The 200-ton broken bell and the great cannon, which has never been fired, were seen as we went to the bus to take us to the Metro, where we were shown the more decorative stations. In the afternoon we visited the Exhibition of Economic Achievement where, after being driven around the perimeter in a peculiar vehicle which was similar to a train of minibuses (the front one being motorised and drawing the others), we had only enough time to see the space exhibition and the inside of an Ilyushin airliner before proceeding to a cinerama show.
Lenin's Mausoleum was the next "sight" we saw on the following morning. We were then shown the graves and plaques of interest which were below the wall of the Kremlin that faces the large multi-floored market, "Gum," across the cobbles of Red Square. When this was over we created some necessary free time in order to do a little shopping for gifts and also to buy food for the long journey home, which was to commence that evening, one day earlier than planned because of some confusion regarding train bookings.
The two-day train journey home was brightened up by a stop at Brest-Litovsk where the bogies had to be changed. This two hour process enabled us to pool our Russian money to buy every one a cooked breakfast (as it was only 08.30) and then give a short concert in the large waiting-room. The audience which, as usual, soon formed around us continued to ask for more until we disbanded.
The two hours of time that were "borrowed" from us on the outward journey, which many had convinced themselves would be well slept through, were returned when we crossed the Polish border soon after leaving Brest, thus prolonging our waking hours. Nevertheless the choir, guided by its conductor and organiser, Mr. Moffatt, and Mr. Chapman, a very experienced traveller, once more were led safely to the familiar disembarkation point of Victoria.
It was disappointing that lack of co-operation or administrative failure prevented fully publicised concerts or, in the case of Moscow any concerts and the promised radio broadcast from being arranged. Yet this did not prevent the tour being one of the most enjoyable. It was distressing that Mr. Moffatt had to spend so much time chasing officials in Russia, to arrange concerts and sort out the travel problems which resulted in our returning a day early, after the time-consuming organisation at this end and the ever-present worry of finance which had troubled him since November.
In connection with this, I would like to thank, on behalf of the choir, all those individuals who helped to raise money for the most expensive tour we have ever undertaken. Unfortunately, I cannot mention them all here. The work of Mr. Stirrup and the Parents' Association deserve mention for helping to share the money worries and taking a great part in their solution. Without their active co-operation and interest this tour would not have been possible.
Epilogue
As this was the last tour that the choir will undertake in the form it has existed in for the past nine years under Mr. Moffatt's leadership, I should like to thank all those who have helped it travel and sing in eight European countries. Again thanks ought to go especially to the Parents' Association and Mr. Stirrup, whose regular support we depended upon as more ambitious tours were planned. The annual donations by Waltham Forest Council were also appreciated.
Last of all, at the end of a significant chapter in the history of the school, I should like to express to Mr. Moffatt, the thanks of all the choristers who have enjoyed singing with the choir, many of whom realised when they joined other choral groups how high a standard was expected of them by their conductor. Mr. Moffatt should be congratulated on not only maintaining a worthwhile standard but getting it to improve despite the problems of an ever-changing group. It is indeed a great pity that the choir, because of the changeover to the Comprehensive System, will have to be radically reorganised as the treble voices have been eliminated. The Monoux Choir can never exist again in its original form.
Roy Phillips-late 6iiM