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Dear Parish Choir, Happy Summer Season.
I hope you all are well and happy as June comes to such a quick close. How can the 4th of July be around the corner? I had a great visit with Mom and Dad and this weekend arrived in Amsterdam. The grey cold rainy weather has broken and the sun is out this morning. My new clavichord is strung and I will visit her at the builders shop this week up in Friesland. I am so excited to hear her for the first time and to get into my projects at the keyboard for the summer. I’ve been collecting the writings of the English composer and Choir trainer, Edward C. Bairstow over the past year. This will make up a portion of my summer reading. I can’t wait to get into these books, he wrote very well and his ability as a choir trainer, composer, and teacher was extraordinary. He really raised the bar in his day of Anglican Church music.

Vestment Cleaning.
May I ask a favor of you all?
If you don’t mind, please take your vestments home and put them through the wash – as you need to. They are machine washable, just take them out of the dryer and hang up. If you do it individually, you won’t loose track of your vestment. I’m still not sure that I could send them to the laundry and get the right vestments back on your hanger. The lock on the closet with your robes and music is progress, but we still have more to do in that little room. I’ll get the rest sorted out in the new season, but until then, if you don’t mind, please feel invited to just take them home and put them through the wash.

My email: helfensteinch@yahoo.com is good all summer, please don’t hesitate to be in touch.
Have a wonderful end of June and if you are traveling, be safe and have a wonderful time.

All my love, Patrick