Today we had not elected to purchase tickets for any concerts during the day so we had free time until 5:30 pm Evensong. As we were riding the bus on the way to Gloucester the other day, a sign caught my eye and I suggested to Bill that we tour Coventry Cathedral, the site of German bombing in 1940, and the subsequent building of a new cathedral.

Here’s the lowdown on Coventry Cathedral from Wikipedia:

The city has had three cathedrals. The first was St Mary’s, a monastic building, from 1102-1539, of which only a few ruins remain. The second was St Michael’s, a 14th-century Gothic church designated as a cathedral in 1918, which remains a ruined shell after its bombing during the Second World War. The third is the new St Michael’s Cathedral, built immediately adjacent after the destruction of the former, consecrated in 1962.

On this trip, we have seen many ruins, but as I viewed the ones here at St. Michael’s, I was struck by the enormity of the building and the sanctity of this holy place, a feeling I haven’t felt from other ruins.

“The ruined cathedral is a symbol of war time destruction and barbarity, but also of peace and reconciliation.”

Provost R. T. Howard said, “As I went into the ruined Cathedral on the morning after the destruction, there flashed into my mind the deep certainty that as the Cathedral had been crucified with Christ, so it would rise again with Him. How or when, we could not tell, nor did it matter. The Cathedral would rise again.”

Rather than rebuild the ruined cathedral, the decision was made to add on a new one. Basil Spence, the architect chosen from a competition, “insisted that instead of rebuilding the old cathedral, it should be kept in ruins as a garden of remembrance and that the new cathedral should be built alongside, the two buildings together effectively forming one church.”

And what a Cathedral it is now! There are many art objects as well as colorful stained glass and dramatic chapels. Carl and I had been here years ago, but all I remembered was the large tapestry in front and the crown of thorns chapel.

As we walked to the front of the Cathedral, we heard some non-Western music from one of the side chapels.

Bill Potter noticed a flyer about organ recitals being held on Mondays during the summer, so after lunch we came back to the Cathedral and heard Christopher Too play a short but stunning program: Prelude and Fugue in D major, BWV 32; Choral pour Organ (Germaine Tailleferre), Scherzo (Maurice Duruflé) and Te Deum (Jeanne Demessieux).

Christopher is a Fellow of the Royal College of Organists, and is the Organ Scholar at Salisbury Cathedral. He has been Organ Scholar at Gloucester Cathedral and junior Organ Scholar at Kings College, Cambridge. He will be moving to be at Organ Scholar At Westminster Cathedral in August 2023.

When I introduced myself as an organist from Hawaii, Christopher said he could tell I was an organist by the phone lanyard around my neck (which reads I ❤️ Bach!)

Joan Ishibashi picked us up from the train station back in Gloucester and we heard Evensong together. It was the combined three Cathedral choirs from Gloucester, Worcester and Hereford, and it was truly exhilarating, especially with all those soaring high As and B-flats from the trebles. Hearing the combined choirs is truly one of the highlights for me of the Three Choirs Festival!

In the evening, we heard a most remarkable “Pilgrim’s Progress,” by Ralph Vaughan Williams, as close to an opera if you’ve ever heard one, with characters, costumes and staging. I can’t believe that this was a work by Vaughan Williams or that he ever composed such a large-scale work. The concert started at 7:30 pm and didn’t end until 10! It was masterfully produced, with virtuosic solos, imaginative staging and heroic singing and playing from the large cast. What an incredible experience!

By the way, you may have noticed that there is an emphasis on Ralph Vaughan Williams in this Festival — we heard the Mass in G minor and “O taste and see” in the Festival Eucharist on Sunday. I was hoping I could share the livestream but they won’t be live-streaming during the Festival.

Here’s a short clip from the Queen’s funeral to put you in the spirit. I am afraid I couldn’t find a Gloucester performance of this, but believe me, it was exquisite.

We missed hearing Ralph Vaughan Williams’ “O clap your hands” from the opening celebration but we did hear his “Sancta Civitas” on Saturday night and “Flos Campi” on Sunday night. This has been a real learning experience for me!