In 2019, Han-Louis and I recorded a CD of music from and about the First- and Second World Wars. There is a wealth of beautiful music from this era, including love songs, remembrance songs, and songs to raise morale. It is as if the wars, by highlighting the fragility of life and our vulnerabilities as humans, intensified emotions.

We had planned a tour to launch the CD in 2020 which included performances in France, the Netherlands, Belgium, London, and the Edinburgh Festival. Of course, we wanted to promote our work. I also hoped to show that the music and lyrics from different countries express similar emotions: love, grief, pride in one’s culture. At heart, we are the same, even when our countries are in conflict.

Then there came the pandemic, and for two years we worked on other projects, when it was possible, and “Echoes of War” was put aside.

Last weekend we gave a recital in Vaals, a beautiful town in the south of the Netherlands, next to the German and Belgium borders. It was interesting to revisit the repertoire after a few years. Since recording the CD, there has been the uncertainty caused by the pandemic and the war in Ukraine. In my personal life, I got married and we have an infant son, and sadly many of our Second World War veteran friends have passed away. All this has changed my perspective on the repertoire. The patriotic songs feel less comfortable. The songs of loss and love are much closer to heart.

Although it’s very early, I would like to wish you all a very Merry Christmas. 2022 has been a wonderful year, moving from lockdown back to international performances as far away as Mongolia. I was moved to be able to sing for Second World War veterans again in Normandy and the Netherlands, at British, American, French, Dutch and German ceremonies. I sang in Lourdes for the international military pilgrimage, for 25,000 people, which after the lockdown pattern of socially-distanced audiences and live streams was deeply moving. Mongolia was perhaps the highlight of the year, singing for the Christina Noble Children’s Foundation together with a choir children from the Blue Skies Ger Village. Please, if you have a moment, consider supporting the foundation.

I am about to go on maternity leave and should be back at work in the New Year. I wish you all a wonderful Christmas and a happy and healthy 2023.

Emma’s setting of “Rorate Caeli,” the introit for the fourth Sunday of Advent, is now available from Edition HH.

81 years ago, on a cold November day, a Special Forces Agent crossed the sea from England to the Netherlands. A dinghy brought him near the shore at Scheveningen, a popular seaside resort near The Hague. There, donning several layers of clothing, he dived off the boat and swam ashore. Once on the beach, he removed his outer layers to reveal Black Tie clothing. In order to blend in with the party-goers, he had doused himself in Hennessy XO.

The man was not James Bond, but Dutch spy Peter Tazelaar, who was returning to the Netherlands to establish contact with England, where his Queen, Wilhelmina, was in exile.

We commemorated him and celebrated his contribution to the liberation of the Netherlands. Two ceremonies were held: one closed with a strong military presence, the other open.

With thanks to Victor Laurentius for sharing the amazing story of “De Grote Tazelaar.”

Germany contemplates the victims of war two Sundays before the first Sunday of Advent. This year, I sang at the German Military Cemetery in Ysselsteyn, the Netherlands, in the midst of over 32,000 graves. During the ceremony, we were invited to reflect on war and its consequences. The Vicar General of the Diocese of Roermond warned us about how easily war can be upon us. The Dutch Chief Rabbi, Rabbi Jacobs, spoke about how war should not be viewed in black and white, with “goodies” and “baddies,” but in a nuanced way.

Together with pianist Lieselotte van Tol, Emma performed the Leiden Anthem and a short musical interlude for the symposium of the Leiden Historical Society. They presented works by Mendelssohn, Schubert, Mahler, and Hahn.

The Dutch artist Casper Faassen celebrated his twenty year anniversary with an exhibition in the Kunsthuis and the Hooglandse Kerk and two evening programmes. Emma sang, and organised music with the Justinus Ensemble with conductor Brian Fieldhouse for dancers Chloé Albaret and Jorge Nozal.

Here is an impression of the evenings.