The choir had its first performance at St. Multose Church in Kinsale last evening. The place had wonderful acoustics and the church itself was simply beautiful, having been built all the way back in 1190. The audience really seemed to enjoy our set – it was a great start to our performance tour.

Today, we were fortunate enough to be a part of a masterclass at the Cork School of Music. One of the school’s professors, Dr. Spratt, worked with us on one of our more complex pieces. He helped us view the piece in a way we never had before. It was a wonderful opportunity for the Augsburg Choir.

I think the highlight of the day was visiting Blarney Castle and having the chance to kiss the famed Blarney Stone. It was a beautiful, sunny day to tour the historic site. We made our way up the castle, stopping in various rooms along the way. It was surreal standing in this fortress that had been there since the early 1200s. Most of the choir kissed the Blarney Stone (which is actually quite terrifying once you realize how high up it is) and then we had a chance to visit other tourist spots around the castle as well as surrounding gift shops. It was a very long but very eventful day. We have now moved from Cork to Limerick and will be performing a joint concert tomorrow night with another vocal group, Ancor. More pictures to come!