Choir visits overseas have been a regular feature for the last fifteen years. We aim to plan a concert tour every other year, but sometimes a tempting opportunity appears at another time and we take advantage of it.

Krakow 2009

In May 2009 the choir had a wonderful and successful trip to Krakow in Poland . What a lovely city it is!

 We sang in some beautiful churches, and visited some memorable places, notably Auschwitz- Birkenau, which left us moved beyond words. We also visited the Wieliczka Salt Mines, which were fantastic, and sang “Lift Thine Eyes” in the great underground cathedral carved out of rock salt, over 90m below the surface.

Another wonderful experience was singing during the Mass in the Church of Our Lady of Lourdes, with Pam Taverner accompanying us on the organ.

Isle of Elba April 2007

On Easter Monday 2007, the choir departed for its second visit to Italy, this time to the island of Elba. After settling in, we prepared to sing in the local concert hall in Marcianna Marina on the second day, but our attempts to have a rehearsal in the afternoon were thwarted because our grand piano, which was being shipped over from the mainland hadn't arrived! Luckily, it arrived in time for the concert and our audience was treated to a wide variety of music from folk songs, to secular music and songs from the shows. Our second concert was in the little hilltop town of Capoliveri where we had been invited to sing with the local choir. The Church was packed and we all thoroughly enjoyed listening to each other. Afterward our hosts had put on a supper for us in the little town square and it was lovely to relax and chat over a glass of wine and a slice of pizza. Our final concert was in a deconsecrated church, in a small village, by the name of Marciana Alto and again we had a lovely evening. Everywhere we went we found the people to be really warm and friendly. The whole tour was most enjoyable and there was plenty of time for relaxing and having fun as well as singing. We returned home with very happy memories.

Czech Republic 2005

The Gotherington Singers had a successful tour of the Czech Republic. A party of 38, including 27 choir members, friends and family, made the flight for a whistle stop four day visit.We started the trip in Prague, before heading to Kromeritz, in Moravia.The first concert was held in Bystrice Pod Hostynem, where we performed in a chateau. Viv sang 'Oh had I Jubals Lyre’ by Handel and then with Mel sang a duet from Vivaldi’s Gloria, Laudamus Te. Our second concert was in Kromeritz and the audience was as enthusiastic and appreciative as the audience in our first concert encouraging us to sing encores. We will remember the people of the Czech Republic as being very warm and friendly.

Bavaria 2003

We had a wonderful trip to Miesbach in Bavaria. This was arranged through the Tewkesbury twinning association, as Tewkesbury is twinned with Miesbach.

The area is very beautiful, and our hosts overwhelmed us with kindness and hospitality. We sang in two concerts, in Bad Wiesee and Otterfing, and also at a Sunday Mass in Otterfing to celebrate their priest's 40 year anniversary.

In between we were taken on some wonderful sight-seeing trips around their beautiful countryside, which is rich in lakes and mountains and pretty chalet-style houses with window boxes overflowing with flowers.

We were royally entertained and our hosts could not do enough for us. We had some wonderful times drinking beer and laughing and singing together! It is difficult to find words to thank them adequately for making our visit so enjoyable. We felt we had made many new friends, and look forward to meeting some of them again if and when they come to Tewkesbury for a return visit.

Tuscany 2001

We arrived in the beautiful spa town of Montecatini Terme on a perfect day, settling quickly into the Grand Hotel Nizza et Suisse. Situated opposite a park, it was an ideal base from which we could visit Pisa, Firenze, Lucca, Cortona and Siena, returning most evenings to relax with cocktails on the terrace and excellent food in the restaurant.

It wasn't just a holiday, however, we were there to sing! Our concerts took place at Pisa Cathedral, Chiesa di Santa Domenica, Cortona (a wonderful hilltop village) and in the Chiesa Santa Maria Dei Ricci, Firenze. Our repertoire included works by Mozart, Franck, and John Rutter: Faure's "Cantique de Jean Racine", and solos by Viv Nicholson, who sang " Oh, had I Jubal's Lyre" (Handel), "Bist du Bei Mir" (Bach) and "Christ in His Garden" (Tchaikovsky). The Newhurst Singers performed works by Mendelssohn, Edward Bairstow and Smetana.

Our audiences were most appreciative, especially a party of Americans, who, having heard us sing in Pisa, attended our concert in Firenze, where they were based. We were overwhelmed in Pisa Cathedral where hundreds of tourists stopped to hear us sing, and Japanese visitors asked us to pose for photographs!.

Under the direction of our, musical Director, Margaret Crompton and accompanied by Catherine Newman, we thoroughly enjoyed the experience of singing in such wonderful places. We had lots of laughs, too, especially when we posed for photographs on the roundabout in Montecatini.

Jersey 1999

In October 1999 the choir visited the island of Jersey to compete in the inaugural International Choir Festival of Jersey. This was a great experience, with opportunities to tour the island as well as taking part in choral workshops, concerts and the actual competition. We heard some of the best choral singing in Europe and we were delighted to be part of such an exciting occasion. After the tension of competition the event finished with a huge party, when all the choirs were conducted by one of the adjudicators, Roy Wales, in an impromptu performance of the 'Hallelujah Chorus' from Handel's Messiah.

No, we didn't win, but we learnt a lot from the weekend that will be remembered and used in the future!

Spain 1998

The choir made a visit to Tossa de Mar in Spain 1998. We stayed in this lovely seaside town and were able to see some of Barcelona, the Salvador Dali exhibition in Figueres and gave concerts in Castello d'Empuries and in Tossa itself.

In Tossa we gave an impromptu recital on the promenade while our supporters handed out handbills advertising the proper concert in the evening. One of the highlights of the visit was the chance to sing in the magnificent basilica of the monastery at Montserrat. We also sang deep in the earth as we toured the cellars of the vineyard at Codorniu and then were able to soothe our voices as we tasted the finished wine.

Malta 1996

Encouraged by the success of our Belgian trip in 1994, we entered  the Malta International Choral Competition in 1996. We thoroughly enjoyed taking part in that competition, singing in the Valetta Conference Centre, but a special memory of the visit was singing in churches on the island. We sang at Qrendi, with a reception afterwards for what seemed to be the whole village and also at Zebbug, where our accompanist had to contend with the 'organ from hell' and also with regular aircraft overhead as they prepared to land at the neighbouring airport. The local scooter riders also enjoyed circling the church as we sang!

It was comparatively peaceful on the lovely island of Gozo, where we sang to a packed church and won over the deeply suspicious clergy, who were initially doubtful of our choice of music. They presented us with a parting gift of a picture of their patron saint which now hangs in the home of a choir member. The post concert reception there took place in the Police station/local lock-up.

The friendliness of the audiences was a delight and we returned to a chilly November in England with very warm memories.

Belgium 1993

The choir visited Belgium for their first venture into 'foreign parts' and were able to sing in historic buildings in Bruges, Mechelen and Ghent.