By Ashley Halkett

Accompanied by faculty chaperones, the Chamber singers performed concerts throughout Eastern Canada during their choir trip from June 11 to 20.

The itinerary included performances in churches, cathedrals and castles, along with trips to Niagara Falls, Toronto, Ottawa, Quebec City and Montreal. Thirty-two of the 37 Chamber Singers went on the tour.

One of their first recitals took place in St. Aidan’s Church Hall in Ontario, where they sang for a crowd of Italian senior citizens.

“Their favorite song was ‘O Susanna,’ sung by the men,” Noah Daneman ’09 said. “I think they enjoyed the concert, even though they probably didn’t know what we were singing about.”

Next, the performers sang in the library of the Casa Loma Castle in Toronto. From there, they moved through Quebec, performing and sightseeing along the way.

In their free time, students walked around the cities, tried the local cuisine and shopped.

“We had a lot of freedom, being able to eat and shop by ourselves,” Zoe Johnson ’08 said.

“When we were going down the river, there was a middle school from Wisconsin on the boat with us,” Johnson said. “We ended up dancing and becoming friends with these 13 and 14-year-old kids.”

Though a choral workshop in Ottawa had to be canceled when the instructor failed to show up, everyone was later taught breathing techniques by an energetic soprano.

“She was jumping up and down, trying to teach us,” Johnson said. “She was a little crazy.”
Overall the students enjoyed the trip’s mix of work and play.

“It was a really great opportunity to share our music with another country,” Brandon Levin ’09 said. “It was fun to sing in different places and strengthen our friendships at the same time.”

“We got to sing in a lot of really beautiful churches,” Michael Kim ’08 said. “But the bus rides were the most fun because Truth or Dare helped us all get a lot closer.”