European Concert Tour 1998

In late June/early July, our chamber singing group, the Mansfield Chamber Singers (Ken Wells, director) joined with the St. Albans Choir of Westwood (Jim Vail, director) on our first ever European concert tour. Although there is lots of competition for a concert audience this time of year in Europe -- occasionally our combined groups outnumbered our audience! -- it was a marvelous trip, and we enjoyed ourselves immensely as we sang our way through Germany, the Czech Republic, and Austria, both formal and impromptu performances. Plus, it was really fun to travel around a couple of weeks with friends instead of our usual "on our own" approach.

Photos from the trip are below. Also available are our travel itinerary (pdf) and Liza's trip journal.

Click photos to see larger versions

Roman ruins in Frankfurt

Robert, Heinrich Müller, Chris
Haggstrom in Bamberg

Altes Rathaus in Bamberg

Proof that we were performing
in Zeilitzheim (outside Würzburg)

Tenors and basses rehearsing in
Zeilitzheim

Jim Vail conducting in rehearsal

Chris Haggstrom studying his
music intently

Liza and Robert at the Würzburg
Residence

The Würzburg Residence
River, bridge, fortress ... Würzburg
Liza and Tamara Haggstrom
became Liesl and Heidi in dresses
purchased in Würzburg

Karlovy Vary, formerly Karlsbad,
in the Czech Republic

Sts Peter and Paul Russian
Orthodox Church in Karlovy
Vary

Robert at the foot of composer
Dvorak in Karlovy Vary, where
Dvorak completed his "New
World Symphony"

Chris, Tamara, Robert enjoying
Pilsner Urquell in Karlovy Vary

St Vita's Church in Prague
on castle hill

View of Mala Strana area of
Prague from the castle hill

View of the castle hill from below

Tamara and Liza enjoying the
*real* Budweiser beer in Prague

...and Liza enjoying more Pilsner
Urquell at a nice restaurant along
the Vltava River

Terezin, formerly Theresienstadt -
this is the entrance to the Kleine Festung

Holiday Inn in Prague, looking very
soviet

Czech/Austrian border

Liza (on the bridge) in Freistadt,
Austria

A view of Freistadt

Robert waiting for a streetcar
in Linz; the yellow church in the
background is the Ursulinenkirche

St. Florian's Abbey

Anton Bruckner's tomb in
the crypt at St Florian's

Bruckner's eternal audience

At Melk Abbey...we're on the Abbey
Road :-)

View from Melk

Liza at our hotel in Vienna, the
final stop on the concert tour

Liza and Robert at the banquet
following our final concert

One thing I liked about this trip was all
the impromptu singing that Robert, Chris and
Tamara Haggstrom, and I did...we sang on street
corners, trains, buses...and at the request of our
loyal fans, sang our signature piece, Zombie Jamboree,
at the banquet.

How to embarrass a friend...or
yourself

Tour over, Liza getting ready
to board the train back to
Munich

Robert with friend Florian
Prugger in Munich

Robert and Liza going Bavarian
(lederhosen courtesy of Hans Prugger)

Robert with Hans and Lisa
Prugger

A beautiful half-timbered
building in Kirchheim, not far
from Stuttgart

Liza with Hans Prugger
waiting for the S-bahn

Robert with his cousin Bettina Reid
and family in Ludwigsburg

Click photos to see larger versions
Roman ruins in Frankfurt	Robert, Heinrich Müller, Chris Haggstrom in Bamberg	Altes Rathaus in Bamberg	Proof that we were performing in Zeilitzheim (outside Würzburg)
Tenors and basses rehearsing in Zeilitzheim	Jim Vail conducting in rehearsal	Chris Haggstrom studying his music intently	Liza and Robert at the Würzburg Residence
The Würzburg Residence	River, bridge, fortress ... Würzburg	Liza and Tamara Haggstrom became Liesl and Heidi in dresses purchased in Würzburg	Karlovy Vary, formerly Karlsbad, in the Czech Republic
Sts Peter and Paul Russian Orthodox Church in Karlovy Vary	Robert at the foot of composer Dvorak in Karlovy Vary, where Dvorak completed his "New World Symphony"	Chris, Tamara, Robert enjoying Pilsner Urquell in Karlovy Vary	St Vita's Church in Prague on castle hill
View of Mala Strana area of Prague from the castle hill	View of the castle hill from below	Tamara and Liza enjoying the real Budweiser beer in Prague	...and Liza enjoying more Pilsner Urquell at a nice restaurant along the Vltava River
Terezin, formerly Theresienstadt - this is the entrance to the Kleine Festung	Holiday Inn in Prague, looking very soviet	Czech/Austrian border	Liza (on the bridge) in Freistadt, Austria
A view of Freistadt	Robert waiting for a streetcar in Linz; the yellow church in the background is the Ursulinenkirche	St. Florian's Abbey	Anton Bruckner's tomb in the crypt at St Florian's
Bruckner's eternal audience	At Melk Abbey...we're on the Abbey Road :-)	View from Melk	Liza at our hotel in Vienna, the final stop on the concert tour
Liza and Robert at the banquet following our final concert	One thing I liked about this trip was all the impromptu singing that Robert, Chris and Tamara Haggstrom, and I did...we sang on street corners, trains, buses...and at the request of our loyal fans, sang our signature piece, Zombie Jamboree, at the banquet.	How to embarrass a friend...or yourself	Tour over, Liza getting ready to board the train back to Munich
Robert with friend Florian Prugger in Munich	Robert and Liza going Bavarian (lederhosen courtesy of Hans Prugger)	Robert with Hans and Lisa Prugger	A beautiful half-timbered building in Kirchheim, not far from Stuttgart
Liza with Hans Prugger waiting for the S-bahn		Robert with his cousin Bettina Reid and family in Ludwigsburg