Memory Cathedral

I spent the past weekend in Adelaide to attend the end of the Adelaide Intervarsity Choral Festival (AIV) 2013. Even just a few days of visiting another city and interacting with interstate friends is both invigorating and exhausting. Here I shall reflect on that and on past choral intervarsity (IV) recollections.

The choristers of AIV had been to Victor Harbour for rehearsal camp and beautiful shots of that made me wish I had attended fully. On returning the choral contingent continued rehearsing at the University of Adelaide and I witnessed a bit of that. I was regaled with acts I had missed from the camp revue while sipping a malted milkshake at the Pancake Parlour. Choristers work and play hard and much of what they do is musical.

The next day across the River Torrens this all culminated in a moving performance of works by Rachmaninoff and others at Saint Peter’s Cathedral. The gig was followed by a post-concert party at a bar we had exclusive use of and which possessed a lovely old-world charm and a balcony looking over the city streets. There was singing and drinking and chatter.

The next day a recovery barbeque in Botanic Park allowed for relaxed hugs and final farewells. I miss a score of friends I barely interacted with but I’m still happy I saw them.

My holiday was a truncated one and yet I did manage to spend some quality time with particular friends. I stayed in the Central Youth Hostel with Belinda and we visited the local produce markets, the Museum of South Australia, and a Thai restaurant in North Adelaide. I went lunching and shopping with Lisa and Ayla and got to see costumes they had worked on for assorted IV functions I had missed (particularly impressive is Lisa as a bat). And the long journey by car to-and-from Adelaide allowed me to spend more time with younger MonUCS Varia, Ryan, Meaghan & Ben (whose driving endurance and good cheer is fantastic).

I also spent some time alone if only to walk from here to there. I had been to the City of Churches in the past and the overall geography came back to me pretty quickly. And as I did this wandering the sensation of exploring another city started reminding me of other IVs.



There is a custom among university choristers of noting the participation of a member in seven consecutive IVs (seven for the seven alternating host cities). I am vague as to whether one has to be a full performing participant to say one has completed a cycle so I will simply note here what I have done.

* For MIV 2012 I sang in the first concert of two and otherwise participated socially in the whole festival.

* For PIV 2011 I only visited for the last few days and only saw the second of two concerts. I also spent some of my time just wandering as I had never seen Perth.

* For CIV 2010 the only performing I did was some promotional singing at the Bus Depot Market. For the fiesta itself however I was ever-present and a very helpful adjunct to the Committee.

* For 60IV (aka H1N1IV) in 2009 I attended for the second half of the festival and sang in the last concert.

* For SIV 2008 I attended for the first half of the festival and sang in the first concert.

* For BIV 2007 I only visited for the last few days and only saw the second of two concerts. This was another new city to me so I did lots of wandering of Brisbane.

Wow. This time seems both short in that it has gone quickly and long in that so much has happened in that timeframe. Also IVs have triggered some significant changes in my life and most of them for the better. Despite my somewhat patchy participation I feel as if I'm a part of this crazy never-ending show. Even if I cannot continue to attend future IVs I will still do what I can to preserve friendships formed as a result of these seven amazing festivals.

Addendum

I have been to a few IVs since this post. But the focus of my blog has shifted away from events and back to topics as it was originally intended. Still I want to record the fact that I got along to other festivals.

* In 2015 I visited the next Sydney IV for a few days. I was hosted by Lisa & MJ, hung with Josh, argued with a prejudiced person who had issues with a publicity sing performed in different languages, saw the concert with Katherine and generally had a good time.

* In 2016 I visited the next Canberra IV, once more just for a few days. It had been years since I'd lived there, so I took one afternoon off to explore old haunts from Civic to Tuggeranong. With choristers saw a dinosaur museum which I had never gotten to in 12 months of living there. Visited David & Veronica and generally had a good time.

* In 2017 I went with Belinda to the next Perth IV and participated in all rehearsals and the concert. We bunked at camp with Priscilla, went on walks and swims, ate in Perth at an amazing old smorgasbord restaurant, and generally had a good time.