Rainy Brussels

After the most gorgeous April and May that anyone here can remember, we are now paying for it with a cooler, rainy June. One up side is the dramatic sunsets. Those Flemish Master painters from the 16th century really knew how to do two things at a minimum extrememely well: gorgeous luminescent skin tones, and a good cloudy sky. They undoubtedly had lots to inspire them in this part of the world...


Maggie got back from her class trip to the Netherlands late on Friday, and we had a quiet Saturday at home together. Yesterday was much more lively however; immediately after the morning service at St. Andrew's we were invited to the home of a congregation member, and we along with a host of other newcomers to the congregation, were treated to a lovely afternoon of food and drink and conversation. It was a lot of fun, but we were all pretty tired out afterwards.

This morning Maggie took Duncan to school, while I took Malcolm to the Maison Haute next the the commune house so that he could line up with the rest of his fellow students, and go into the hall to write the first of his four days of C.E.B., or Certificate d'Etudes de Base. He's been doing lots of work to get ready for it, and was a little nervous but I'm sure that he will be fine.



After seeing Malcolm into the building, I met up with Maggie and we walked home together, via a slightly different route than usual. I had noticed earlier this week that a horse is once again being kept in the vacant lot next to the ruined Villa Mathias so I took Maggie by, so that she could see the horse and say hello. I must take the boys by with a carrot or two, or maybe a piece of apple or some sugar cubes, so they can introduce themselves properly.


I also received a very pleasant telephone call on Saturday, from the artistic director of the Chapelle des Minimes here in Brussels. It would seem that they liked my dramatic singing last November, and have invited me to come and do a Bach solo baritone cantata this coming October. It's actually a cantata that I've done before, and one that I have sometimes auditioned with, entitled Ich will den Kreutzstab gerne tragen, and deals with the point of view of a religious pilgrim. The text is beautiful; here's my own little translation of the first part of it:

I will the cross-staff gladly carry, it comes from God's loving hand
it leads me, after my troubles, to God, in the promised land
there at last my grief goes into the grave
there, from me the Saviour wipes away my tears

...and so on. There's also lots of imagery dealing with journeying through the world, sea voyages, raging storms, and the strength of eagles. In other words, perfect stuff for baritones!

That will mean that in late October and early November I will be quite busy with four Brussels performances so far: the two Messiah performances and this Bach, and another remembrance day concert at St. Andrew's. It will be good to be performing in my adopted home town for a change.

Ciao!