Salzburg Festival Blog 13 (4 Aug)
Long day ahead. Three rehearsals planned on this piece. I arrive to hear a little of Alois Glassner’s warm-up rehearsal with the Bach Choir. They are working very hard and also in the middle of preparations for two other projects as well as singing our Theodora performances. We cannot fit as many singers in St. Peter’s as we can on the stage of the Festival house and the C minor mass divides into two choirs at various points. I rehearse choir and orchestra all afternoon putting most of my energy into the choir at this point. My orchestra is wonderfully patient and supportive in this process. Afterwards a I drive over to St. Peter’s with Rob Howarth (on this occasion my organist-on many others my trusted operatic assistant) and we discuss the ever changing London musical scene. I rehearse our impressive solo quartet (including two of the lovely ‘Cosi fan tutte’ cast) Patricia Petibon, Topi Lehtipuu, Ruth Ziesak and Brindley Sherratt (fondly remembered in Salzburg for his performances in ‘Benvenuto Cellini’. The evening ‘tutti’ rehearsal in the church proceeds well despite the choir being clearly tired after their recent exertions. I am a little tetchy and remind people in various ways that we have a job to do.