On the evening of 7 April at The Church of St Vedast alias Foster, the Fletchers had a real musical treat at a concert by the Deo Gratia Baroque Ensemble - and raised funds for the Fletchers Trust at the same time.

The music has been skilfully chosen to explore three themes with connections to the Fletchers. Old London and Fletchers connections through traditional tunes included a fascinating song of the late sixteenth century about an Archery Competition held in York - which was an even so good it was worth reporting in London! 

We learned that instrument makers, not numerous enough to have a guild of their own, joined the Fletchers. One example was Richard Mears, who traded just round the corner in St Paul's churchyard and who also published music. The ensemble played both arias and sonatas published by him.

With delightful music by Francesco Geminiani, a prominent Italian Violinist active in London  in the eighteenth century, and by his contemporary Pietro Castrucci, as well as by Byrd, Purcell and Handel, we were transported into the London of the late sixteenth to early eighteenth centuries.

Our thanks to Dr Anne Marie Christensen for devising such a wonderful programme, and to her fellow instrumentalists, Rebecca Dinning (violin), Jenny Bullock (cello), and Anna Tetsuya (harpsichord), and soprano Dr April Fredrick who particularly enthralled us, violin bow and arrow in hand, with Cupid's entrance from John Blow's Venus and Adonis.