We bought tickets for a concert of Baroque music at our local church, Saint Pierre de Rest. The church is only open one Sunday a month for mass so this was a good opportunity to see the interior as well as to hear some good music.
It seemed like the whole village had turned out for the concert. The church is small so we had to sit on benches a distance from the action. In front of us our neighbors, Christian and Metta Racinet, were sitting in all their finery.
The church itself was built in two phases – the rectangular floored nave was built in the 12th century and had rounded windows reminiscent of the Romanesque period. The transept was more ornate with columns and Gothic style windows. That part was added in the 14th century. There were two side altars, one dedicated to Saint Peter. The church has been recently restored. The tuffeau stone has that “well-scrubbed” look that makes it seem to glow. Apart from the Stations of the Cross there wasn’t very much of visual interest on the walls.
The concert was a performance of vocal music by Vivaldi, Farinelli, Scarlatti, and Handel performed by a singer named Alexis Vassiliev. He was accompanied by Mario Raskin playing the clavichord who also performed some pieces by himself at the start of the recital.
At the end of the concert the audience was invited to take a glass of refreshment in the little place to the side of the church. The organizers were serving champagne of the region. We had a taste before heading home.
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