SERENDIPITY – the occurrence of events by chance in a happy or beneficial way. So called after the three princes of Serendip who were ‘always making discoveries, by accident and sagacity, of things they were not in quest of’.

Having resided on this planet for more years than I am prepared to publicly admit, I have long since resigned myself to the fact that any discoveries I am destined to make have not only been previously discovered, but probably forgotten by now. I no longer expect life to hold many surprises – pleasant or otherwise.

But last week, I joined the three princes of Serendip as I found myself joyously amazed.

I’d been to Edington before - a small village whose only claim to fame as far as I knew was a rather splendid pub that boasts a micro brewery, farm shop and café specialising in local produce. The pub serves a very satisfying breakfast which has provided an occasional reward for an early morning dog walk conveniently starting and finishing from its car park.

But, as I discovered this week, Edington has another, much more worthy, claim to fame: it hosts a festival of church music which, coincidentally, came into existence the same year I did.

We have managed to avoid each other for over half a century, each oblivious of the other’s existence, but this year someone I knew well had been invited to perform and, finding myself at a loose end, I decided to give moral, if not vocal, support.

The service I decided to attend was being broadcast by the BBC so we were asked to be in our seats at least five minutes before transmission. I arrived half an hour beforehand – plenty of time to spare, I thought. Except that there wasn’t.

The tiny church was packed with hundreds of people and I had to hunt to find a seat.

The festival boasts three choirs of professional singers including a front row of boys drawn from the country’s best cathedral choirs (Salisbury being represented, of course!).

I’ve attended more than a few choral services in my time, but this service was something else. The singing was sublime, the music uplifting and the acoustics and quality unsurpassed. For me the highlight was a modern piece, The Beatitudes by Estonian composer, Arvo Pärt, the most performed living composer. It was one of the most beautiful musical events I have had the privilege to attend – made the more special by being so unexpected.

I am profoundly grateful to the Edington Festival and for my invitation. Not only because of the musical experience, which will be with me for a while, but also for shaking me out of my rather arrogant cynicism.

What next, I wonder…