A retreat is your chance to step aside from life for a while, to rest and just 'be' in a welcoming, peaceful place.
Our Patrons
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Margaret Rizza
Composer and musician, Margaret has been an enthusiastic supporter of the work of the Retreat Association for a number of years and was Liturgist at our 2015 conference (see photo below).
Margaret studied at the Royal College of Music in London and the National School of Opera in Italy and went on to use her gifts as a world-class opera singer for 25 years under such conductors as Benjamin Britten, Igor Stravinsky and Leonard Bernstein.
Margaret then taught singing at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama for 17 years. In 1986 she dedicated herself to the wider aspect of music in the community including outreach projects in prisons, hospitals, hospices and schools.
She began training and directing choral groups in 1989 and composing in 1997, and her contemplative choral music has received worldwide recognition. She has led many retreats, days of prayer, days of music and meditation, and vocal and choral workshops. Her beautiful contemplative music continues to be widely used and loved in church and reflective settings.
The Celtic Collection
In this collection, Margaret Rizza has set to music 18 Celtic Blessings. Here are blessings for morning and evening, blessings for birth and joyful moments, blessings for protection and enfolding. Here are songs and chants to which Margaret has leant her characteristically simple but profound music that will bless every individual and occasion in which they are played.
Officium Divinum
Margaret Rizza's contemplative choral music is known and loved by many and is often used in the setting of retreats and prayer times. The music in this new collection is based around the four periods of prayer in Common Worship - morning, midday, evening and night. For those familiar and new to Margaret's work, this collection will bring inspiration and peace to times of reflection.