Concert Week #1...

Wow, we have a lot of things to see this week!

It started Saturday with our first visit to the big "Turtle's Mating" looking building on the harbour for a performance.  We had been looking for something to go see in the Concert Hall (the biggest hall of the 5) and when Clarice saw Handel's Messiah on the schedule when her parents were here we got tickets.

Handel's Messiah is his most well know oratorio, though according to the program it is very different from his others in that the subject, in this case Jesus, never speaks.  The entire program is about His deliverance and our response to that great gift.  It is most well known for the Hallelujah Chorus where tradition has it that the audience must stand because the King stood at that point during its first performance.  Some suspect he stood because his bottom was tired, but after seeing it performed by a world class orchestra and over 420 choir members I can tell you it is very moving.

We loved the entire performance, but the things that stood out were: 1) the size of the hall and 2) the soloists.  The soloists for obvious reasons - they were very good, but being struck by the intimacy of the largest hall of the Opera House was really shocking, especially given that we had been in the same hall during our tour with Jay and Karen.  When we were a couple of months ago, no one outside of our small tour group was in the room and it seemed pretty spacious.  When it is packed it seems quite a bit smaller with seating for only about 2000.  We had excellent seats mid-way back in the center of the floor.

After the show, we stopped for gelato at the little place we like at Circular Quay before taking the ferry back to Manly.  As we were waiting to be served, one of the choir members "rocked up" with her husband and also ordered.  We both thanked her for the performance and gave her our sincere congratulations.  It was neat to be able to thank someone for giving us such a great show.

The only bummer of the day was the heat.  This was the first day it hit 90 and we had a 2:00 show so we were not able to get to the beach.  Bummer!  Wait 10 months for real heat and then when it arrives have to get dressed up and stay inside.  Still, the ferry ride was quite enjoyable, especially the return trip in the late afternoon when it had cooled.  Of course, we went to the beach after church on Sunday but it was only about 80 and we were only there 1.5 hours before it started to rain!  I think we are not meant to spend a lot of time on the beach on the weekend.

Monday was a day off from concert-going, but Tuesday is a biggie!

Jon