On a Choir Tour: Then and Now

This is probably my favorite picture from the Chorale Midwest trip to the British Isles.  It's of us singing at Liverpool Cathedral.  Thanks to Diane Constantine for taking it and sharing it on Facebook.

Of course I don't have any pictures on my camera of the choir singing--I was also singing at the time!  So I have to rely on the photos other people took.

To me, this is an image of the most important part of the trip:  singing with an outstanding choir in amazing places.

This fall when I joined the choir, I heard about the upcoming Choir Tour to the British Isles and immediately wanted to go!  I floated the idea by Bruce--who would have to hold down the fort alone while I was gone--and he encouraged me to go.  Ellen and Bill thought that Mom and Dad would want me to go.  So thanks, Mom and Dad, for funding this trip!

I've been on Choir Tours before, but it's been a while.

In college, I went on a music tour every spring break: the first two years with the Wooster Scot Band, and the second two years with the Wooster Chorus.  The tours were sponsored by the admissions and alumni offices, so the trips didn't cost the students anything except the money we spent for lunches.

Each day, our bus would pull into the parking lot of a big Presbyterian Church.  We'd have a short rehearsal (just to get our placement figured out and listen to the acoustics).  Here the Wooster Chorus rehearsing in a church somewhere--that's me on the far left side in front, next to Sal Midolo.

Then, families of the church would feed us a potluck dinner.  We'd play/sing, and afterwards, go home with families to stay at their homes.  The next day we'd get on a bus and head to the next destination.

Sitting on the bus was actually fun--you got to know people better as we rode from town to town.  Normally, we were not allowed to sing, but here's a picture from the Woo Cho bus--the label said "Steve Towne singing the traditional morning song."  I can't remember the song, but maybe it was the one that starts "Wa-a-a-yup in the sky--The little birds fly . . . "

The tours were always in interesting parts of the country:  Pennsylvania and New York City, Washington D.C. and Baltimore.  Chicago and Madison. We always had time to do sightseeing and museums. The band even did a trip to Florida one year (that did cost us $50).

Oh, and here's me wearing our uniform.  I played piccolo.

So after having those great tour experiences during college, I thought the idea of doing a Choir Tour as an adult, and in the British Isles sounded great!

Some things were very similar:  the bus,

the interesting venues, some time for sightseeing, roommates, a demanding director.

Other things were different:  we had to pay for this trip, no homestays, no potlucks.

We were busy during our British Isles Tour--9 concerts in 8 days!

We did two kinds of concerts: formal and informal.  My favorite concerts were the ones like the picture at the top:  "informal" (short) concerts in cathedrals.  We'd just set up and sing while the tourists wandered around--or stopped to listen to us.  We sang in:
Christ Church Cathedral, Dublin

Liverpool Cathedral (picture above)
Lancaster Cathedral

Ripon Cathedral

York Minster

and Selby Abbey

We also had "formal" concerts when we presented a complete concert of about 90 minutes.  Those concerts ended up being at very small churches, most of which had pretty sketchy acoustics, and a small but appreciative audience.  Sometimes they had punch (and tea) and cookies for us.

As much as I enjoyed singing our entire repertoire, and as much as the audiences seemed to enjoy our formal concerts, I felt that they were overkill.  There we were in our pearls/tuxes doing a very sophisticated concert . . .  in a tiny venue with bad acoustics and a small audience.

I found out later that it had been very difficult for our British Isles coordinator, Peter, to find formal concert venues for us.  He's set up choir tours before, but this time, there was very little interest from local churches to host us.  Someone said he sent out letters (email?) to over 40 churches in Dublin, for example, and only got 1 reply.  There wasn't a network of churches and alums as there was with my college tours.

Probably there needs to be a new way of doing the concert venue setups.  I'm wondering if there is an association of community choirs, for example, that might be able to put choir directors in touch with one another to help sponsor concerts like ours.

Our church, Lovely Lane UMC, recently sponsored a concert of musicians from Russia.  They contacted our choir director, who agreed to host them.  He set up meals and lodging for them (homestays), and coordinated their concert, as well as doing publicity.  The concert was packed!

I bet that could work for a group like us when we next go on tour.

Beer, gold, and books

Cheers!

If you've been to Dublin recently--maybe you've had a Guinness at the Guinness Storehouse.

Chorale Midwest a.k.a. (for the tour) Cedar Valley Choral Ensemble stopped there on our tour of the British Isles.  The visit was included with the price of the trip. If it hadn't been, I don't think I would have visited--it had a £16.50 ticket price!

When I tried to explain it to people, I wasn't sure what to call it:  a museum?  an amusement park?  a mall?  I finally settled on "an attraction."

During the early 20th century, the building was a brewery and storehouse. It still retained its industrial look with high, open ceilings, exposed pipes, and brick walls.

It was a nice place to wander around on a slightly damp Dublin day.  They had several eateries; I got a nice warm bowl of Irish stew.

As we walked through the 7-story building, we got a long, drawn-out history of Guinness and a step-by-step explanation of how it's made.  We walked into the huge ovens where long ago the malted barley had been toasted.  And we saw huge copper pots like these.

Mostly, though, we were treated to over-the-top PR messages!  They cracked me up!

I think Guinness is pretty clever to build this attraction.  They get tourists to pay to imbibe beer and promotional copy.  Guinness gets its story out with this attraction!

After visiting this . . . . attraction . . . I thought about how tourist attractions present themselves and tell stories to visitors.  I had a chance to look at another approach when a few of us visited the Irish National Museum in Dublin.  I don't have any pictures from it--no photography allowed--but I found a very few images from the web.  Here's the entrance--it was a cool building!

Now this was very definitely a museum--and kind of an old-fashioned one, too. It had displays in glass cases with very brief tags on things.  Unfortunately, this museum didn't do a very good job of telling an overall story. It was hard to find the important items in the collection, and many items were not curated well--there wasn't much in the way of context or importance or how the items contributed to Ireland's history.

I totally missed the Tara Brooch, an important item in the collection.  It wasn't highlighted in any way.  I only found out about it after I left.

There were lots of gold items from treasure hoards, but they were just labelled, with no explanation of what they were for.

I think this little Victorian museum was just overwhelmed.  It was run by the state, and probably didn't have enough funds to hire someone to create an overarching story and decent curation.  Maybe the Guinness curators could stop by and do some pro bono work . . . 

When I went to London, I knew one place I wanted to visit:  The Dickens Museum.

I'd been there ages ago, in 1980 and it was rather boring:  dusty items in glass cases in a house where Dickens lived from 1837-1839.  But I'd read that it had been renovated just last year.  I'd also just read the marvelous Dickens/Nelly Ternan biography, The Invisible Woman by Claire Tomalin, which got me in a Dickens mood!

I was sure that I'd have to visit this house alone--just seemed about as geeky as could be: far away from tourist attractions, pretty limited in its appeal . . . but three of my chorale friends joined me, Paul, Nancy, and Laura!  I was thrilled to have the company.  And I think they enjoyed the visit because it was awesome.

Would I call it "a museum?"  Well, I guess so, but it was a modern museum:  lively, interactive, full of personality, and with a true sense of narrative and message.  Dickens would have loved it!  In fact, he was there!

My favorite rooms were the dining room, where the table was set for Dickens and his friends, and where a recording of a dinner party was playing . . . 

and his study--there's his desk!  

Also in his study were books you could pick up--they were facsimiles of books he had in his library with a brief explanation of why they were important. Here's a book he used to do his famous readings, complete with his notes! Recordings of people reading from Dickens novels were playing in the sitting room.

The kitchen had implements you could pick up and look at, and an explanation of what he might have eaten.  Turns out Catherine Dickens, his wife, wrote a cookbook.  (They were still living together in this home.)

The upper floors were the nursery and servants' rooms and they had material related to Dickens' childhood.  Like the rooms themselves, the story of his father's imprisonment in debtor's prison and Dickens's work in the blacking factory were off-limits to his public.  A coverlet on the narrow servant's bed had the moving scene where Jo, the street sweeper in Bleak House, dies.  Gave me chills!

Since visiting these places, I've done some reading about the history of museums, and museum theory on Wikipedia.  Fascinating!  These three places are examples show the wide range of ways that materials from the past can be shared with the public--from a plain display of items in cases, to an interactive narrative, to a walk-through advertisement.  I knew which one I liked best . . . 

Traveling to England

I'm leaving tomorrow for a tour of the British Isles with Cedar Valley Choral Society.

But it's not my first trip to England.

The first time I went was in 1980.  Here's a picture of our group at the ruins of St. Augustine's church in Canterbury.

My AP European History teacher, Bruce Wagner, and my Honors Brit Lit teacher, Vicky Balzer, arranged the trip and took us during spring break of our senior year.  I heard about the trip when I was first at Midpark High school, and started saving immediately.  My grandma split the cost of the trip with me.  Thanks, Grandma H.!

I still have the scrapbook I made about that trip--with photos, brochures, postcards, and ticket stubs pasted into its yellowing pages.  There are also excerpts from the journal I kept in a spiral notebook when I was there, filled with phrases like "It gave me chills!"  and "It was so exciting to see where all those famous people were buried!"  I think I spent the entire trip on an emotional high.

I do know that I didn't sit or eat very often.  I had a huge list of places I wanted to see: the usual tourist places plus the Courtauld and Wallace art museums, Samuel Johnson's house, various churches, etc. etc.  I found a traveling kindred spirit, my friend Scott, and we were on the go the entire week.

We did sit down at some shows (Jesus Christ Superstar, As You Like It, and Deathtrap), and for tea at Fortnum and Mason.  (I still have the receipt:  £7.40)

I didn't get back to England  until 1988, when I got a job teaching at TASIS England Summer School.

It is an American-style private school outside of Windsor.  I taught English Literature and Composition to a small group (maybe 12) kids, aged 13-18.  I also helped with sport and took kids on trips on the weekend.  It was great.

I went back the next year a married woman--and Bruce came with me.  I call it our money-making honeymoon!  After a driving tour of northern England and Scotland, we came back to teach.

Here we are at Lanercost Abbey.

My sister and brother-in-law were also teaching at TASIS that summer!  Ellen and I decided it was the first time we'd lived in the same place in 9 years!  Later that summer my friends Laurie and Scott visited (at different times) and my parents came through with their friends, the Bowmans. It was great traveling around with them.  Here we are in Winchester.

In 1993, I did something I've always wanted to do: helped take college students to England.  My friend Wendy had arranged a Winter term (the month of January) trip, and she had so many students sign up that she needed an extra chaperone.  I was glad to oblige!  Here we are at Highgate cemetery--they have awesome tours, if you're wondering.

My most recent trip was with my guys, the best trip yet.  We went in spring of 2006, when Ellen and Ken and Gabi were living in London (Ellen and Ken were working at the American School in London).  I loved being able to show Robbie and Eli around.  Here I am with Eli at the Globe Theatre.

This time my trip will be something entirely different:  a music tour.  With 9 concerts in a variety of venues--some being medieval cathedrals--this will be a new experience, a new way to see my beloved England.  Plus, I'm going to visit Dublin and Edinburgh and York, three places I've never been.

I probably won't be blogging--I don't like "typing" on my Kindle very much.  But I will definitely post pictures on Facebook, and maybe I'll write up a trip report when I get back.  Of course I'll be keeping a journal in a spiral notebook. . . .

Packing for an overseas trip

I've been packing for my British Isles Choir tour trip today.

I always try to leave plenty of time to pack. (As in a day or two, not a week or two!--I'm not quite that organized!)  I like having the time to remember things that I've forgotten, because I'm always thinking of something at the last minute.  More often, I remember forgotten items just after the last minute, and we have to go around the block and back into the driveway.

For this trip, I also created a packing list a couple weeks ago.  It was fun to add things to it as a way of getting psyched for the trip.

My bags are packed now for our early Tuesday morning departure.  I have 2 bags:  a 22" rolling suitcase and another carry-on with a shoulder strap.  The carry-on has all my choir stuff: performance attire (several editions as we have 9 concerts), black shoes, music folder.  The choir director insisted on having our concert stuff in a carry-on.  The rolling suitcase has everything else. I'll check it.

I put yarn tags on both of them so I can recognize them.

I was worried I wouldn't be able to fit my stuff into my usual suitcase (which is 20" and magenta!), so I'm using the 22" blue one.  I think I could have used the 20" one.  But it's nice to have extra room for the Expanding Clothes Problem (always happens on trips).  Also:  I want to buy a nice lambswool sweater, some gifts, and--of course--some tea and McVities!

Some of the choir members were concerned about packing and the weight limit.  That's not an issue for me, ever.  Here are some reasons why:

• I'm small, so my stuff is small.  Doesn't take up much room.
• I always dress in mix-n-match. My usual outfit:  dark pants/skirt, colorful top, cardigan. I know how to do traveling clothes because that's my usual wardrobe.
• I don't mind wearing things more than once.
• I am good at wedging lots of things into a suitcase.  When I taught in England the first summer, I used a "weekender"-sized Samsonite suitcase for the entire summer (10 weeks).

I always take a bag when I travel.  This time's no exception.

In my bag I have my purse (cross-body, roomy enough for a small umbrella), my Kindle, my umbrella, my crocheting, my folder of maps and information, that sort of stuff.

So that's it.  There's my luggage!  So does anyone want to give me overseas travel advice?  Is there anything I should be SURE to take along with me???

British Isles Choral Tour

So in about four days, I'm going to be singing here.

It's Christ Church, Dublin.  Isn't it beautiful?  I'm thinking the acoustics will be really interesting here!  Perfect for the group I'm singing with, the Cedar Valley Chorale Arts Society.  That concert will be the first of nine concerts--some formal, some informal--that we will perform as we make our way across the British Isles.

The touring group is a subset of Chorale Midwest, a group I just joined.  I auditioned for CM in August last year, and was delighted to be invited to sing with them.  They are an awesomely talented group.  Many of the members are former music majors and/or current music teachers in the public schools. Others are just true amateurs, lovers of music. We did three concerts this year, including a wide variety of music--Byrd, Mozart, spirituals, and contemporary choral music.

The tour just sounded too good to pass up!  Bruce generously encouraged me to go, and my brother and sister told me that Mom and Dad would want me to go, and they would want me to use some of my inheritance to take the trip. So I signed on.

We leave on Tuesday!

I bought myself a little iPod touch so I can take pictures and post them to facebook as I travel.  That way I can stay in touch with Bruce and the boys--and my friends who are online.  So watch for posts.

Here's a brief outline of the tour:

6-11: leave from Chicago OHare
6-12: arrive in Dublin--tour and dinner with Irish music show to follow
6-13:  visit Dublin, concerts at Christ Church and Bray Methodist Chapel
6-14:  Travel to Wales, stay at Ruthin Castle
6-15:  Short concerts at Liverpool Cathedral, Lancaster Cathedral; arrive in Edinburgh
6-16:  Visit Edinburgh, concert at Liberton Kirk
6-17:  Short concert at Ripon Cathedral, visit York Minster, Concert at Southland Methodist Chapel
6-18:  Short concert at Selby Abbey, arrive in London, evening in London
6-19:  Visit London; evening concert at Wembley Reformed Church
6-20:  Return to Chicago OHare

Thanks to Bruce for holding down the fort while I'm gone!
Thanks to my siblings for encouraging me to go!
Thanks to Mom and Dad for providing the funds for me to travel!  I will be thinking of you when I'm in some of those wonderful churches!