Stranded choir 'sings for supper'

An English choir stranded in Edmonton because of the cloud of volcanic ash over Europe was to perform Monday evening at All Saints Anglican Cathedral.

The impromptu performance came after the 24 members of the Rochester Cathedral Voluntary Choir found themselves at the end of their budget in an Edmonton hotel, said choir director Douglas Henn-Macrae.

"We were in town, stuck," he said. So the group looked up the closest Anglican cathedral to their downtown hotel on the internet, found the music director and phoned him.

"Was there anything we could do for him like singing for our supper?" Henn-Macrae recalled asking. "Was there anything he could do for us, like possibly finding us some beds? And he called me back the following morning and said yes to both things."

The group had already spent two unscheduled days in Seattle, having just finished a 10-day tour. Upon arrival in Edmonton, flights to England were still halted. The congregation at All Saints opened their homes.

"Potluck suppers arranged in peoples' backyards, we're very impressed and very grateful," said Henn-Macrae, noting the group includes a wide range of ages, with the oldest in their 70s.

"We also have an eight-month-old baby in the party, but she's not singing in the choir yet," he said.

The mother of that infant, Alice Coram, said the choir was in dire need of rescue.

"It was horrifying when we first arrived here to think just how people were going to cope with the situation," she said. "Particularly for the younger members of the group, the financial implications were quite scary."

The group offered to perform a worship service "English cathedral style" as a gesture of thanks.

"I think we've been amazingly impressed by American and Canadian hospitality, and how they can just rise to a challenge like this," Henn-Macrae said.