Yes!!!!!! Thanks Michael for taking this big task.
How long a choir usually stay in Rome? Maybe a week?

frogman, good point.

This is just fantastic Michael that you are taking this on - one benefits from this decentralized organizational structure. I surely hope that many people participate.

I would like to remind everyone it was MY IDEA at colloquium Chicago to take our act on the road to Regensburg or Rome. 'Twas the last night when no one was stirring on the first floor, and we feted AOZ and JT with Tiki Wine.
Of course, I don't think the Carbinieri (I don't know how to spell "cop" in Italian) want me anywheres near Italy. I might end up in their parliament!
But I'm big in Poland.

You have to sing for St. Peter's. They really really need guests choirs who know chant. they are in shorter supply than you can imagine. And it is now an absolute requirement that guest choirs now know chant.

Could Scott T. join as a chant director?

St. Peter sounds good, and a better weather in May to travel?

I think if it were May, we'd have to go just before Memorial Day to beat the airfare rise. Worked well for me last summer. There will be of course conflicts no matter what time is chosen. I had suggested January as that is a cheap time to travel and most DM's take a week or so off after Christmas. We might choose to sing for Epiphany if that's possible. Just a thought. Rome is quite cold at that time of year though!

Mia, thanks for the recommendation. Once I have a small group of folks to help me with this, we'll talk about names and especially fees and availability. There are certainly several excellent candidates. Keep the ideas coming folks!

Just remember- too cold in Jan to sit inthe Piazza Navone and have a glass of vino. I liked October the best.

Donna.

MaryAnn,
Rome...the four of us.....two mega sopranos and two guitarists of note....we could retire in Tuscany.
Think about it.

Deal, Charles!
Tuscany sounds perfect. I say we go to Italy with the CMAA and scout it all out.

[I've been having computer troubles, and tried to write you. Did you get an email from me last week?]

January in Rome isn't too bad - at least not bad as in the Continental weather you get in much of the USA.

If there are other members in the UK (students, expats, those of us who bought the journal and found ourselves members etc), my offer still stands to arrange a meeting at which voices could be tried out and music rehearsed (before the wine bottles are opened). Travel to Rome for such members would be quite inexpensive.

St Peter's now, but he does appear at the Lateran frequently. The Lateran was the fancy church before St Peter's was completed.

Of course we must sing at St Peter's but there are so many wonderful churches in Rome that I'd love to sing in, especially the tourist-overlooked medieval churches. Donna, I'd love the idea of working Assisi into the trip like you did. My wife would be sure to go then!

In all seriousness, Mike, count Wendy and I in. (One soprano, one tenor) The January date would be preferred for us.

I see there's another Donna on this thread:). Peter's Way offers a 7day tour and a ten day and a 12 day, I think. We went for ten days both times. Director's Tours are shorter. You land in Milan, spend the night, then go on to Florence, Assisi, possibly Siena, then down to Rome. The smaller choir I went with spent the night in Assisi, which was such a holy place, even for us Anglicans- we stood in the window of our Hotel Room and sang parts of the Missa de Angelis overlooking the hillside. As Anglicans we were not allowed to say mass in the Basilica, but we had a private Mass in a convent whose name I can't remember, and the blessed nuns provided us the bread and wine.
The second time I went we went up and spent the night at Stresa, on Lake Maggiore, in a hotel overlooking the palace of St. Charles Borromeo. (Not sure that's the right appellation?)after landing in Milan.There is no place more beautiful in Italy, inc Rome,. Our group was too big to spend the night in Assisi. Hotels there are smallish. We sang Mass in the Church of the HOly Trinity in Florence before going on to Rome
Of course, you can also just go to Rome for 7days. Peter's Way offers anything you want to do, really.
Donnaswan

I'm into this idea. I just did a pilgrimage to Paris with my choir, and while it was a little extra work I highly recommend putting together such a trip yourself without going through a tour company.

Michael, if there is anything I can do to help if you decide on Peters Way, I'll be glad to do so. I know Peter, the president of the company, and my music director and he are very close friends. He and his staff have been extremely helpful to us in the past. I think he has an inside connection with the Vatican, and he seems to be able to arrange things for his groups that individuals often are not able to do. Actually, we did not spend the night in Assisi either; it was an all-day trip crammed with activities and some free time to browse the shops.

I also hope the choir gets a significant amount of time and rest set aside for practice while staying there?

(I know this may be brought up in a second stage in the planning process, but I hope eventually once the choir gets a director (or directors), music will be selected and hopefully a 'music package' can be posted, so people can practice at home. (Also, music selection and director might be important factors for some prospectice participants.) And the actual practice together can be happen when everyone, at least most people, gets there, and I would think this is something that needs to be counted while customizing the trip?
just my 2c.)

Michael,

This sounds great, I am not the most experienced chanter but if I could make the grade I would consider it either in January, May, October or December in other words anytime.

David Deavy

Thanks everyone. Mia, you can be sure that repertoire and locations will be selected well in advance. Everyone will get music well before they would actually start practicing it too. Having taken groups on tour before, I'm pretty good about balancing rehearsal, performance and down time.

Thanks, Michael. And thank you for your patience. It's good to know we have a competent leader. This is going to be such a wonderful event.

For all those who have expressed interest, please send me an email to moconnor09ATgmailDOTcom. Please include your full name, mailing address and voice part. Any other information would be welcome, such as experience level and information on range, since polyphony is not standard SATB. I'd like a few male altos to help that part have the proper bulk.

G, hopefully you will be employed in our area by that time. I really need someone to work with and build the women's schola.

Larry, I received your latest missive. I changed email address last year, though. If you sent anything to Comcast, it's gone.

Let's see how many people we get, but I'm thinking from an organizational standpoint, having everyone on the same itinerary might be best. The shared experience will enhance the trip too. We certainly can't sing everywhere (but wouldn't it be great if a billionaire paid all our expenses for a year to tour Europe and sing liturgies?)

Right now I'm thinking 8-12 days that will include 2 Sundays. We need rehearsal time over there and I need to find repertoire that we can sing for the 2 Sundays (first would likely be all chant) that would also be usable for a concert somewhere. Personally I really want to sing EF Vespers somewhere. I've done enough of them now that I can put one together in short order. I'll make sure that everyone gets music well ahead of time. We might even have a short reading session with any of us who make it to Colloquium this summer. Just thinking out loud here.

I would be very interested in this trip/event...please keep me posted! Thanks!