London to Coll - Cavendish Winds

 After a hazy cup of coffee at 5am in East Finchley, we finally set off on our way to the beautiful Scottish island of Coll. Once a certain member of the group got over the absence of a clutch in the semi-automatic car, it was plain sailing. Highlights of the drive include the beautiful scenery of the Scottish lochs, sausage baps and numb bums.

 Having driven through periodic downpours all day, we descended into the beautiful coastal town of Oban in the glorious evening sunshine, and after twelve hours in the car we still hadn't had enough of each other, so decided to check into our 5 bed hostel room. As usual, Charlie failed to fit into his bed so we went in search of fish and chips instead. We had a fabulous supper in a local chippy, and followed this with some dessert in the late-night waffle and ice cream joint on the seafront. After a beautiful sunset we processed into the shower and then to bed.

 The next morning we were whipped into line by Katy and made our way onto the 7:15 ferry, where we spent most of the trip playing cards and admiring the stunning scenery from up on deck. Despite introducing ourselves to "the wrong Jonathan" on the quayside and almost ending up working for a local volunteering organisation, we soon found ourselves settling into our home for the next week - The Bunkhouse. It was great to meet the other musicians on the course and getting to know one another over a lovely lunch but couldn't avoid getting our instruments out any longer.

 We used the afternoon rehearsal to get stuck into the Francaix quintet and to make plans for the workshop we'll be giving to local school children on Wednesday. We've found that beyond our individual practise, the main task with this piece is finding the right balance as an ensemble as it's often densely scored and marked with slightly unrealistic dynamics, if they were to be taken literally.

 

 Later in the afternoon we took a little drive around the island and made a beeline for the beach. Once there we couldn't resist charging into the sea in the howling winds and crashing waves, and making the most of the fresh air. Having successfully filled every crevice of our clothing/bodies with wet sand, we made our way back to the Bunkhouse to freshen up and sample the local ales from the pub.

 We're looking forward to a good nights sleep and a day of rehearsals tomorrow, including our first coaching session.

Cavendish Winds