July 25, 2018

Gstaad, Switzerland

What an incredible time we've had here in the Swiss Alps! The air quality here alone makes the two-hour windy drive up from Geneva airport worth it; and now, on the way to the next stop on this tour in Belgium, I'm already looking forward to returning to this beautiful part of the world one day soon.While here, I went hiking up a small mountain, actively hydrated my vocal chords in the hotel spa steam-room, sampled some local Swiss cheeses and honey at breakfast, watched some tennis as the Gstaad Swiss Open (courtesy of the hotel) and caught up with several acquaintances, including our Swiss concert promoter and the owner of the hotel we were staying in, whom I knew from before I joined TKS. So all in all, a rather productive, relaxing and fun few days!The concert itself was in the gorgeous village church in Saanen, just a couple of miles from Gstaad, which has a lovely acoustic for TKS sound with an intimate atmosphere. The last time we were here was three years ago, and I remember performing some of the Ligeti Madrigals for the first time... An experience that left a mark! This time though, we were singing our 50th Anniversary programme which seemed to go down well with the locals, and the evening ended with a lovely meal back at our hotel with the promoter's team. Rack of lamb with a glass of Merlot always goes down a treat in my book!