I kept an informal diary of our trip to Bayreuth. Here are some of my memories.
Judy Rich (parent)

Sunday
Walk along the river to Markgrafin-Wilhelmine Gymnasium (the grammar school). Everyone in high spirits helping each other to carry instruments and music. At the school we meet Herr Szabo, a double bass player and composer; Frau Hegen who is a pianist and music teacher who has given her time to accompany us on the piano, and Susanne Pott, a young student who will play a duet with David Franklyn.

After a delicious lunch at the Odeon, our first German beer garden, we dash up the hill to the Festspielhaus to watch the opening of the festival. Many Mercedes and Audis carry dignitaries to the first opera of the season (Lohengrin). A brass band on the balcony heralds the arrival of important people, while small groups of protesters line the route with signs protesting the elite support of the opera.

A few hours in the park until we meet at Johanna's house where, in the cosiness of Johanna's room, Alice introduces us to the Wagner opera Lohengrin, telling us about the themes, plot and characters, and playing parts of the music. Agnes, in a very moving dialogue, tells us about Wagner's anti-Semitism, his connection with the Nazis and Hitler, and her own personal experience of refusing to listen to Wagner until she was in her 30s. Basically, as Agnes put it, Wagner was a nasty piece of work and took advantage of lots of people, as well as being anti-Semitic. However, his music is fantastic and (Agnes feels) a real experience. Agnes then led everyone in singing some of Wagner's music before we adjourned for dinner which Johanna's mother (Paola) had prepared for us, a varied and delicious meal. Sophia, David, Satori, Stefan and William take turns playing pieces on the piano, culminating in an impromptu piano duet from David and Paola.

Monday
Once again we head to the grammar school for a session with the pupils demonstrating the Kodaly method. In a huge school hall with a mammoth organ as a back drop, the BBCM demonstrated to 150 German teenagers how the sol-fa system is taught. Agnes explained to the class about Kodaly method and that seeing is hearing and hearing is seeing. Peanut and Sophia demonstrate how Kodaly is taught to little ones. The BBCM sings rounds and demonstrates clapping and singing, Sophia and Peanut sing ‘Ode To Joy’ in German with audience participation. The programme finishes with Herr Szabo (bass player), Agnes, Kirsty, Hester and Johanna playing one of Mr. Szabo's own pieces ‘Variations on a German Folksong’, and Agnes and Herr Szabo playing Rossini's Duetto.

To EVO for 11:30 lunch. EVO is an electricity generating company in a large office block in downtown Bayreuth. Johanna has organised with the manager for us to eat in their spacious canteen for free!

Back at the hotel Amit gives us a spirited talk on The Flying Dutchman. The children are enchanted and five lucky ones who are going to see it tonight at the Festspielhaus are very well informed.

We dash to the Marktplatz to catch a bus to the University. It is very hot and the bus is very crowded, but everyone in good spirits. Agnes demonstrates the Kodaly method to a group of students training to be teachers. They are inspired and she organises the session so that the Germans and the BBCM share and make music together. Most memorable was having the Germans sing a traditional folk song and the BBCM students singing it back in sol-fa — a lively demonstration of how they hear the music.

Five of us fly to the Dutchman and the rest enjoy the town, the swimming pool and each other's company.

Tuesday
An early start (8 am) with Caroline talking about Parsifal. Then a walk to the Richard Wagner Museum. Lunch at the EVO, then back to the hotel for some practice before walking up the hill to the Festspielhaus where we are expecting a guided tour at 2:00. Unfortunately, signals got crossed and they are not expecting us. Agnes perseveres, however, and arranges a tour for the next day. We adjourn to the beautiful gardens of the Festspielhaus for rehearsal and a talk on Liszt. At 4:00 Parsifal begins and all who are going proceed to the Festspielhaus for a long and enjoyable evening!

Wednesday
We start the day with Kirsty telling us about the opera Tristan and Isolde and Agnes talks about Liszt and his connection with Wagner. Up the hill again for our tour of the Festspielhaus, which sits on a hill about a mile away from our hotel and the centre of town. A guide shows us around the orchestra pit, back stage and onto the enormous stage itself. The whole theatre is made of wood - the floor is bare wood and the seats simple wooden seats with just a little cushioning. Our guide explains that everything is designed to bring attention to the stage itself. The orchestra pit is constructed in such a way that the audience cannot see the orchestra during the performance. Consequently the musicians and conductors play in T-shirts and shorts! We are all impressed with the height of the stage itself and the fact that for Lohengrin they actually create a lake on stage with thousands of gallons of water.

Down the hill to the Town Hall where we meet a representative from the mayor's office, Herr Bohner, who tells us the history of Bayreuth and its connection with Wagner and Liszt. Pictures of Wagner, Liszt and Cosima are on the walls of the reception room. Herr Bohner encourages co-operation between countries starting with cultural links like ours. Drinks, cakes and folders for all (badges, too).

A tour of Markgräfliches Opernhaus, the original opera house in Bayreuth, which Wagner decided was too small to stage his operas. "Very surreal", says William. It is a baroque theatre, quite small. The lights are dimmed and you can imagine what it would have been like when it was lit by candles in the 18th century.

Back to the hotel for a rest before our concert tonight at the University. Unfortunately not a very large audience but a sensational performance of the Bartok choruses. Everyone performs incredibly well, despite the limited audience and limited practice time.

Herr Szabo invites Agnes to the local beer garden and regales us (in German) with viola player jokes.

Thursday
Johanna's turn to talk to us about Wagner. Today we hear about The Mastersingers. It is a shame that our time is limited because all of these operas are so rich. But we have a taste.

Then we leave for Eremitage, a wooded area with beautiful gardens not far from the city. We bring all the instruments (4 cellos, 6 violins, 2 trumpets, 1 french horn) and all our music and find a shady spot to play English baroque music — David and Sam play trumpet pieces and Alicia plays a french horn solo. Hester, Johanna, Kirsty and Agnes play a cello quartet (an arrangement of Wagner), and Alice and Sophia play the Bach Double Violin Concerto.

After lunch Johanna has organised a coach to take us to a lake in the mountains for the afternoon. Here we have an introduction to the Ring Cycle under towering pine trees beside a picturesque lake. Swimming, canoeing and cake-eating follow!

Dinner in a German beer garden on a balmy summer evening. Some of us slowly stroll back through this beautiful city taking in the buildings, fountains, flowers and cobblestone streets.

Friday
Some very quick packing before we depart for a 10:00 meeting with John Tomlinson, a bass/baritone from Lancashire who has sung Wotan in the Ring Cycle for ten years at Bayreuth. (It is most unusual to be invited to sing it for so many years). This season he is appearing as King Heinrich in Lohengrin.

Agnes interviews John Tomlinson and asks about his early musical training, how he learns his roles, his working arrangement with directors and what his aspirations are. (This fascinating interview is all on the Bayreuth BBCM video). John Tomlinson is a very warm and engaging man with a wonderful rich voice and we all enjoyed hearing him tell us about his life in opera.

Final lunch at the EVO. We show our appreciation with a short concert in their auditorium which is enthusiastically attended by fifty or so staff. Everyone has been very kind and generous to us. Ice creams all around!

Visit to Liszt museum for some, souvenir shopping for others, before a 4:00 departure for the UK.

Bayreuth Postscript
from Agnes Kory
I would like to offer my deepest thanks to the organisers and participants of the 3 October Bayreuth reunion "thank you" party. I am overwhelmed by the generous gifts and compliments! The surprise music played in my honour by the teenage group and Sophia quite simply makes my life worth living.