THE resident choir and congregation at St Michael’s church, Bude, was delighted to host a return visit from some of the members of Schola Aquae Sulis — a touring choir that has been singing in England’s finest cathedrals since 1980.

The choir’s members come from all across England and even further afield, with David Williams from the Bude choir being one of them.

They gather every year, for a week, to sing services in one of the great cathedrals, including Salisbury, York Minster, Durham and Norwich.

Around half of the full choir were able to come to Bude for the weekend of October 21 to 23, and for the duration of their visit they renamed themselves the ‘Haven Consort’.

After a hectic schedule of rehearsing on the Saturday, fuelled by welcome refreshments provided by the home team, the group provided a delightfully light-hearted concert in the church that evening. Those in the audience, who forsook Strictly Come Dancing for live music, were amply rewarded with an impressively varied programme.

Showcasing the versatility of the 13 musicians, the choral pieces ranged from madrigal style to the old favourite ‘All in the April Evening’, and then on to a word-free arrangement of Percy Grainger’s ‘Country Gardens’, redolent of the famous Swingle Singers.

Instrumental expertise was also in the spotlight, with organist Stephen Penton making full use of the powerful trumpet stop in his performance of ‘A Trumpet Minuet’ by Alfred Hollins.

Five members displayed their skill as a recorder ensemble, playing some very evocative Tudor and Renaissance music. Coming closer to the present day, everyone enjoyed the string duet arrangement of the 1925 composition ‘Tea for Two’.

The Bold Gendarmes comic duet from Offenback’s operetta prepared the way for the final flourish — the Teddy Bears’ Picnic. Without a doubt, it was a delightful performance from start to finish.

On the Sunday morning, the Haven Consort augmented the resident choir in leading the signing for the parish mass. Their combined sound was very special, adding a singular lustre to the music that day.

The following Friday, David Williams, instigator of this musical event, embarked on a sponsored psalm marathon. David undertook this ambitious fundraiser to celebrate having been in St Michael’s choir for 50 years.

In it, he set out to sing his way, a cappella, through all 150 psalms in the Book of Common Prayer. He began at 7am and people dropped in to the church throughout the day to encourage him and make donations.

His list of sponsors, who had pledged various sums to support this epic task, certainly had their confidence in him vindicated. Still in strong voice, he triumphantly completed psalm 150 in fine style at 4pm, having raised a total of £1,100 in the process.

A spokesperson said: “Well done David, and our heartfelt thanks for being the initiator of so much fellowship and enjoyment.”