Our "dressing room" in Wroclaw; Concert and Mass at the Cathedral

 
When we arrived at St. John the Baptist Cathedral in Wroclaw for our concert, we were greeted by the priest who was the celebrant of the Mass in which we'd be singing.  Through an interpreter he told us how happy he was to have us there to take part in the High Mass, in honor of the Feast of Corpus Christi.  He also talked about the great privilege is to be in the "special place," the cathedral which was first established on that site in 1000 AD.  He then pointed out where we could change into our concert clothes.  Not the usual restroom or office space.  Instead he showed us to one of the cathedral's several chapels, the Chapel of St. Elizabeth which was built in the 1600s.  The chapel is under a skylit dome dome that is painted with frescoes by Italian artists who also sculpted the magnificent statues of angels and saints. The question that someone in our group always asks of a changing area wasn't necessary this time:  "Will someone watch over our things?"  We were given the best guardians ever under those masterpieces of art and heavenly inspiration!

Three quarters of this cathedral were destroyed by bombings in WW II, but the chapels remained relatively intact.  The story being that when the Russians bombed the cathedral, the flames miraculously stopped in front of the fallen statue of St. Elizabeth, preserving the three back chapels from destruction. Despite the fall, bombing, and general destruction, the statue remained unharmed.

One of the altars and marble statues in the St. Elizabeth's Chapel, our "dressing room!"

Unexploded artillary remains in the outer wall of the Wroclaw Cathedral

A walk in the rain to the Cathedral for our concert

The Cathedral's Square

 We were privileged to be seated in the choir seats at the front of the Cathedral since we would be singing for this High Mass.  The Mass was in honor of the Feast of Corpus Christi, an important feast in Poland where most of the population is Catholic. The feast honors the Catholic sacrament of the Eucharist (Holy Communion).  The Mass ended with a procession through the large Cathedral where the Eucharist was carried by the three celebrants and many in the congregation followed behind.  This procession was repeated every night that week after Mass in honor of Corpus Christi.  We were immersed in incense. 

Tenors and Tenorettes await the beginning of the High Mass

Lighting the candles for Mass (step ladder necessary!) 

Alto Judy Cuthbertson distracted by the art and carvings surrounding us

Our fans in Wroclaw
 Alto Jane Viste's nephew Terry, his wife, Basia and two sons, Franek and Edward, happened to be visiting Basia's parents in Wroclaw at the time of our visit.  The family came out to wave to the Chorale's bus  and also to take part in the Mass and concert.

Our fans in Wroclaw

Franek, Edward and Terry Keenan wave goodbye to Chorale bus,


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