Tour

I finally found some WiFi connection, so here are a few updates I wrote so far:

Sunday March 2, 2008

We set off for Pennsylvania, Chicago and everything in between yesterday. The trip started off looking like it might be crazy when the bus was 20 minutes late, but apparently he just got stuck behind a train somewhere. But we got on and all settled in. I was surprised to find that I had a set of seats to myself. I guess in my head I was picturing hours on end in a bus with little to no space crammed up against the window while one of my choir mates drooled through a nap on my shoulder. Not the case. Besides the fact that it is a bus, I’m pretty much living in luxury. I started out in the back of the bus, but decided that the back-of-the-bus crew was a little much for me who just wanted to do a lot of reading throughout the trip. But, by the end of the day I had found some empty seats up toward the front where it is a little more docile.
Enough about the stupid bus. We didn’t sing the first day. We drove for about 2 to 3 hours and arrived in Millersburg. All we did there was get hooked up with our host families and head off for the night. I ended up staying with my roommate Derick at the house of someone who actually goes to Bluffton. They fed us brownies and ice cream and we sat around and talked for awhile. Like I said before I love awkward host family conversation. It’s not always awkward, but it is always the same thing. I think it’s just nice to have people so interested in me…even if they are just trying to fill the silence.
I would say our first concert went really well. We didn’t do the whole program because it was part of a church service, but we did a good portion. It is hard for me because I have only really been with the music for half a semester whereas everyone else has almost everything memorized. The director says we can take our music up with us if we need it, but there was one time when I looked up and realized I was the only one with my folder. From now on, I will probably just fake when I don’t know as best I can.
We did another concert at the end of the day. This was our first full concert. Once again I thought it went well, but a lot of times I apparently can’t tell when we’re doing poorly. If nothing else, I’m having fun. I actually really enjoy doing these concerts. It’s kind of a rush. But then again, it is still early in the week.

Tuesday, March 04, 2008

We’re at our first mall. When people talk about tours in the past, they always joke about how we always find ourselves with free time so we end up going to a mall to waste time. This is that time. We’re actually in Pittsburgh right now, which is semi-exciting simply because I kind of know where we are and can tell people fun facts. I think I was actually at this mall at one point last semester. Yesterday was a really busy day. We did three programs total, but only one of them was the full concert. We sang at a Christian School, a Retirement Home, and then a Church in the evening. My first though was “Retirement home? How lame.” But it turned out that they were our most appreciative audience. The were a far cry from the Christian School kids who were forced to come listen to us. To be fair, they were pretty attentive, but the elderly audience had such joy in their faces while we sang.
By the time the evening concert came around I could already tell that we were really starting to get better as a choir. They always talk about how by the end of tour the choir sounds really good. Dr. Suderman was saying before we left that he was really excited about where we were then and where he thought we could be by the end of tour. Now that I’m getting better at having the music memorized I am starting to actually get into the meaning of the songs. One of my favorite songs we sing is in a Latin chant style and the translation says something like “Where love and charity are, God is. There is such immense joy, forever and for all time. Alleluia, God is here.” One of the things I really appreciate about Camerata is the fact that we do try to create worship with our music and portray the meaning and depth behind the songs. There are some moments in our program that are absolutely beautiful every single time we sing them. There are others that are truly powerful. And then there are even others that are just fun. I felt like such a dork when I said before that I really enjoy doing these concerts, but each one is a great worshipful experience.
We sing tomorrow briefly at the church where I interned last semester. I’m excited to see everyone again, even if it is for a short amount of time. Plus, I never really got to show them the “choir” side of my personality. Well, half and hour left in the mall. I’ll probably just read the book I bought so I don’t do any more damage to my wallet.


Hopefully more to come...