Wick (Double Diamonds): Week 3, 18 May

What a busy week that was!  First, the bus to Inverness, and then the train to Stirling, where we stayed overnight before taking the train to York.  There we found the luggage pickup at its appointed place – a man with a sturdy bicycle with a trailer attached.  This is a free service offered by the hotel so you can stretch our legs and walk there unencumbered.  Our rooms were ready when we arrived and we settled in as best we could until our suitcases were delivered.  Being a ‘boutique hotel’, there were many arty touches – for instance, the kettle, coffee machine, cups, etc. were ‘housed’ in a large dolls’ house.  The machines were in the ‘house’ and the cups and coffee in the ‘attic’.  Additionally, on the floor below there was a ‘pantry’ stocked with sweets, crisps, fizzy drinks, and cakes – all free to guests.

The Dollhouse

The tour officially started for us with a reception for ‘newbies’ in the Guildhall.  The other participants came along about half an hour later.  Generally, the conversation went, ‘Is this your first tour’, and ‘How did you hear about it’, and ‘This might be your first tour but it won’t be your last.’  Most of the other participants had been on multiple trips with this company. 

The Chapter House at York Minster

Following the reception there was a formal welcome by the tour manager and a talk on ‘What is Early Music’ given by an eminent professor who had devised the musical programme for the tour.  He was also there throughout, giving two further talks to provide context for the music, and he also performed in one of the concerts.  The talk was followed by one of the three dinners provided during the tour, and after this, a concert by the Tallis Scholars in the Lady Chapel of York Minster.  It was sublime.  I can’t think of any words to describe it. 

Hotel stairway

The first concert set the tone for the following days, and we were not disappointed.  All the musicians were world-class.  It was like listening to recordings, but live. Here’s a list:

• The Tallis Scholars in York Minster
• Bernard Cuillier, Harpsichord, in the Mansion House
• Rose Consort of Viols in the Merchant Adventurers’ Hall
• Consone Quartet (string quartets) at Hovingham Hall
• Elizabeth Kenny (lute) and Nicholas Mulroy (tenor) in Holy Trinity Church, York
• ApotropaïK (medieval/renaissance ensemble) in St Peter & St Paul’s Church, Pickering
• The English Cornett & Sackbut Ensemble in The Hospitium, York
• The Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment with Lucy Crowe & Sofia Kirwan-Baez, sopranos, at Castle Howard

Castle Howard

While I did take knitting along with me to the concerts, it was a pair of socks and not the gansey, and I only knit while waiting or during intermissions.  I thought I might knit throughout, but when the Tallis Scholars started to sing, my arms turned to jelly and I couldn’t.  However, there was lots of knitting on the train, and great strides have been made.  As mentioned previously, the body has a ribbing ‘feel’, and I’ve included a detail photo to show the stitch – P1 K1 P1 on one row, and K3 on the next.  The hood is washing and drying, stretched out on wires, and will have a drawstring added around the face opening – it’ll go in the I-cord edging.