About

It was during the late 17th century that “The Grand Tour” became firmly established as an essential educational rite of passage for young British noblemen. Over almost two centuries, thousands of young men, accompanied by a tutor, even an entourage should they have sufficient wealth, flocked to the cities of Europe to study the classics and experience the art, music, architecture and the fashionable society of the times.

Our “Grand Tour” gets underway in Ireland with a suite of miniatures inspired by Jonathan Swift’s famous 1726 satirical novel, Gulliver’s Travels. The composer is Bert Appermont.
1. ‘Lilliput’ 2. ‘Brobdingnag’ 3. ‘Laputa’ 4. ‘Land of the Houyhnhnms’

We remain in Ireland a while longer to listen to Percy Grainer’s wonderful setting of the Irish Tune from County Derry (think ‘Danny Boy’!) then we sail across the Irish Sea to London for the Official Military Approval (1762) of The British Grenadiers as the regimental march for the Royal Military Band.

The Italian city of Verona was an important destination for “Grand Tour” travellers. Not only was it a very Roman city with many incredible examples of classical architecture still standing, but it is also the setting for ‘Romeo and Juliet’, which has over the centuries perhaps been Shakespeare’s most popular romantic tragedy. The story is very old but Prokofiev’s music for the ‘Capulet Ball’ scene (Dance of the Knights) remains as fresh and alive as it ever was.

Paris brings us to Victor Hugo’s great novel, ‘Les Miserables’. By the time of its writing (1862), the Grand Tour was virtually at an end as a result of the Napoleonic wars, the development of rail transport, steamships, and Thomas Cook (mass tourism). Fortunately for us, the 1980 musical, Les Miserables has plenty of good tunes to recommend it!

This does not bring “Our Grand Tour” to an end, however. Our very special guest, Brett Budgeon, takes on the mantle of tour guide introducing us to a whole new set of fantastic destinations – which can be found beyond the sea, the moon, and even beyond the stars before depositing us, not on Earth, but on glorious Jupiter (‘to see what Spring is like’).

‘Jupiter, the Bringer of Jollity’ from The Planets by Gustav Holst, arranged by James Curnow