What is it that persuades wine writer and broadcaster Oz Clarke and Armonico Consort’s team of musicians and supporters, to come back for a fourth year of aching legs and saddle sores?!
Yes, Oz & Armonico are back on the road in September, cycling 200 miles over four days, giving mini-concerts in care homes, and aiming to raise £10,000 for Armonico’s ‘Memory Singers’ projects which bring the power of music to people living with dementia.
This year’s route takes the intrepid pedallers from the Consort’s home in Warwick, through the rolling hills of Northamptonshire, via the university city of Cambridge to the Suffolk coast at Aldeburgh, home of Benjamin Britten.
Along the way, Oz (a former choral singer) and the team will bring music and fun to residents at six care homes, getting them singing, clapping and joining in with percussion instruments, and relaxing as Armonico play and sing for their enjoyment.
On the final day, the team will partner with the renowned cultural charity Britten Pears Arts to lead a session with participants from their Later Life programme who regularly engage with their own musical activities.
The interactive mini-concerts feature a wide range of music from Somewhere over the Rainbow to Armonico’s trademark baroque music which energises older people and helps them reconnect memories.
After 200 miles on the road, the cyclists end with a visit to Fisher’s Gin Distillery and well-earned rest at The Brudenell on Aldeburgh seafront.
If music has been a part of your life, do please sponsor our cyclists per mile on their challenging journey and help us to expand our ‘Memory Singers’ and care home projects.
Find out more about Armonico Consort’s projects for older people
