On Saturday we were Wrexham bound, and there was great hope that rehearsal would finish in time for the Wales v England match. I feel that an open and frank discussion should be had about working on rugby international days - surely they should be like an unofficial Bank Holiday or something?
The programme for the evening concert was a repeat of the Bangor concert. However, as the stage set up was quite different, due to the shape and size of the stage, it was necessary to cover quite a number of corners.
The stage has a proscenium arch and so balance can be quite an issue, even within the strings, as the basses, by necessity of space, end up behind the arch. In addition to this, the acoustic is much drier than that of the resonant Bangor hall.
A dry hall can be both a blessing and a curse. On one hand, you can hear everything very clearly and dynamic contrasts are easier to achieve, but on the other, you have to work really hard to make a warm sound, and it's a lot harder to achieve a well blended ensemble.
Rehearsal over, it was down to the serious business of international rugby. Skimming over the fact that Ireland lost to Italy, the Wales v England match was a thrilling game. Especially if you were Welsh. Not so much if you were English.
As the final whistle blew and Wales took the championship, it looked very much as though second trumpet Rob Samuel was going to have to be sedated, overcome as he was with the elation of his country's 30-3 annihilation of the English team.
On to the concert and we were off with the Sibelius. With the basses now sitting directly behind our section, I heard bass lines I'd not been aware of before!
That's one of the interesting things about different venues - although you seldom end up sitting exactly where you've been comfortably established in the rehearsal studio, the moving around to fit in with the dimensions of each space inevitably gives you the opportunity to hear something you thought you knew from a slightly different perspective.
At times this can be disconcerting, but it keeps you on your toes, and there's always something new to listen out for!
One of my favourite aspects of Beethoven's Fifth on this tour has been one that may have passed some audiences by. The contrabasson, heard only in the last movement, generally shadows, mirrors, or compliments the lower string lines, and so, on this tour our contrabassonist, Dave Buckland, was seated in the midst of the violas, cellos, and basses.
I personally have never performed Beethoven 5 like this, but I can wholeheartedly say I thought it worked brilliantly. It subtly adds a different colour to that final, uplifting, victory-of-the-soul-over-adversity movement. Dave plays his part with the relish and glee of a schoolboy, and it was such a pleasure to play alongside him.
Concert done, it was back in the car and back to Llandudno for the final concert of the Spring North Wales Tour.
