We may be on our summer break, but that hasn’t stopped us from getting together for some festive summer socials! On what felt like the hottest day of the year in late July, several of us (representing all 3 ensembles, no less!) gathered in the Augustiner Biergarten for the first time since pre-Covid days. As usual, we parked ourselves in the shade near the Spielplatz so that those with small children could attempt to converse for a minute or two in between chasing their active offspring around. Plenty of nice food was brought along – including excellent homemade Obatzda and Zwetschendatchi – and, of course, no shortage of refreshing  Augustiner beer was also consumed. We hope to make this an annual event again; it’s certainly been missed.

Our next chance to gather was a few weeks later, for the Munich Summer Sessions in Rindermarkt, where the Resident Alien Big Band pleased the enthusiastic crowd with a solid set, including a couple of beautiful solos from our own Caro Kelley, who is now pursuing a successful career as an award-winning singer-songwriter. Their encore, with Caro covering “Skyfall”, was particularly popular, and we couldn’t help but wonder if Adele, now in town for a series of concerts, caught a bit of it herself!

No doubt we will find time to gather again this summer, before starting up our rehearsals again in mid-September. Prost!