ONEIDA AREA CIVIC CHORALE
Chorale Ensemble Returns From Amazing Baltic's Experience
.The OACC Tour Ensemble, a group of 35 members of Oneida Area Civic Chorale,recently returned from a 10 day concert tour of the Baltic countries of Estonia,
Lithuania and Latvia. Under the auspices of Music Celebrations International, thegroup was a part of the American Celebration of Music Concert Series. Director Mark Bunce and accompanist Jared McFarlin lead the group in a variety of numbers from the March and June Chorale concerts, including Kathleen
Ballantyne’s “All Join Hands”. The Chorale sang in Latin, Hebrew, and Italian on various numbers. Traditional spirituals were represented with Tim Osick’s “Like a River In My Soul”, and Robert Gibson’s arrangement of “Down by the Riverside”. The ensemble also sang a Jay Althouse arrangement of John Lennon’s “Imagine” and three arrangements by Mark Hayes: “The Prayer” (Sager/Foster), “One Song” (Hamlish/Bergman) and “Let There Be Peace” (Miller/Jackson).
After leaving from JFK airport, the group arrived in Tallinn, the capital of Estonia, along the Baltic Sea, where they were met by their tour guide, Jolita Auglyte and bus driver, Vlad. Time in Tallinn included a guided walking tour of the Old Town area, which is on the UNESCO World Heritage List, as well as sites around the city and surrounding countryside. Their first concert was at St. John’s Church in Old Town and was well received. The group then moved on to Riga, Latvia, stopping along the way at the resort town of Parnu, the summer capital of Estonia. Located on the Baltic Sea at Parnu Bay, this resort area has an expansive white sand beach. After walking the beach, the group enjoyed a lovely meal in an Art Nouveau restaurant. Lunch was followed by a drive through Guaja National Park, the largest and oldest in Latvia.
In Riga, there was a driving tour around the city, followed by a walking tour through the Art Nouveau district, the National Opera House, the Freedom
Monument, and the Old Town area. The second concert of the tour took place in St. Peter’s Church in the Old Town. From Riga, the tour continued to Lithuania.
Stops en-route included Rundale Palace, with its beautiful French rose garden, and the Hill of Crosses. Over the years, the Hill of Crosses has come to signify the peaceful endurance of Lithuanian people despite the threats they faced throughout history. The hill stood as a testament to the Lithuanian people's
determination to preserve their religious and national identity during those timesof occupation by other countries, especially the Soviets. In 1993, Pope John Paul ll prayed there and sent a large crucifix which is displayed there. The tour then continued to Vilnius, the capital of Lithuania.
On the first day in Vilnius the group enjoyed a morning city tour which included the Presidential Palace, Vilnius University, Gates of Dawn, Town Hall Square and the Old Jewish Ghetto. Town Hall Square is the location for a Portal, a technology art sculpture which connects to a network of identical sculptures all over the planet. Each Portal is located in a public space, providing a real-time livestream 24/7 that is frequently rotating between different Portal locations on Earth. Tour members were able to observe and wave to people in Poland. After the tour, the group dispersed with free time for shopping and lunch before heading to the hotel to get ready for that evening’s concert. The day ended with the concert in the nearby city of Kaunas, at St. George the Martyr Church / Monastery, which was founded in the 15 th century. After a quick race to the bus in the only rain of the trip, the group enjoyed another lovely dinner at Miestos Sodas Restaurant.
The final full day included an excursion to Trakai, former capital of the Grand Duke of Lithuania and home to the largest Karaite minority town. Following a
lunch of karaim kibins, a type of pastie, the group performed a recital for staff and patients at a Vilnius hospital. The evening brought the final concert before a large audience at St. Catherine’s Church in Old Town Vilnius. This was followed by a farewell dinner at a local restaurant.
The following is a "spot on" summary of our experiences as captured by Nancy Mitchell, one of our singers on the tour.
Ten days in the Baltics: This has been an amazing adventure! We have stayed in 3 different city’s in 3 countries:
-Tallinn, Estonia
- Riga, Latvia and
- Vilnius, Lithuania.
All slightly different yet connected. The weather, while a little warmer than expected and packed for, has been amazing! The food has been rich, delicious and local. We have shared tables as peasants and as royalty. Drank local beers (liquid bread) and sampled some of the best bread I’ve ever tasted! Who knew that beet soup would be so delicious, can be served cold or hot and have a whole festival based on it! We have toured castles, national parks, cities with both old and new “towns”, palaces, gardens, caves, climbed bell towers for the best views and dipped our toes in the Baltic Sea. So many cultural influences here. Each countries citizens are influenced by Finnish, Polish, Russian, German (and more) heritages. So much closer to conflict both in history and in current affairs. You can feel it. It is a beautiful region of the world, the people are welcoming and kind, country side is lush, cities are clean. There is definitely a sense of pride felt in their countries that newly won freedoms exude.
The singing, oh the singing! We sang in 3 cathedrals, a concert hall (used to be a church) and a hospital. The audiences have been BIG! The last evening there was seating for 400+ and people were turned away. The night before was many, many more than that. They have been so welcoming , enthusiastic and appreciative- we even did encores and had to bow. The people love music and have even had a bloodless revolution called “The Singing Revolution” Each performance was such an emotional connection to the local people and visitors alike. Music is such an amazing bond.
This has been a memorable journey. I am so grateful to have shared this time (and a cold ) with some amazing friends both old and new in the Oneida Area Civic Chorale.
Lithuania and Latvia. Under the auspices of Music Celebrations International, thegroup was a part of the American Celebration of Music Concert Series. Director Mark Bunce and accompanist Jared McFarlin lead the group in a variety of numbers from the March and June Chorale concerts, including Kathleen
Ballantyne’s “All Join Hands”. The Chorale sang in Latin, Hebrew, and Italian on various numbers. Traditional spirituals were represented with Tim Osick’s “Like a River In My Soul”, and Robert Gibson’s arrangement of “Down by the Riverside”. The ensemble also sang a Jay Althouse arrangement of John Lennon’s “Imagine” and three arrangements by Mark Hayes: “The Prayer” (Sager/Foster), “One Song” (Hamlish/Bergman) and “Let There Be Peace” (Miller/Jackson).
After leaving from JFK airport, the group arrived in Tallinn, the capital of Estonia, along the Baltic Sea, where they were met by their tour guide, Jolita Auglyte and bus driver, Vlad. Time in Tallinn included a guided walking tour of the Old Town area, which is on the UNESCO World Heritage List, as well as sites around the city and surrounding countryside. Their first concert was at St. John’s Church in Old Town and was well received. The group then moved on to Riga, Latvia, stopping along the way at the resort town of Parnu, the summer capital of Estonia. Located on the Baltic Sea at Parnu Bay, this resort area has an expansive white sand beach. After walking the beach, the group enjoyed a lovely meal in an Art Nouveau restaurant. Lunch was followed by a drive through Guaja National Park, the largest and oldest in Latvia.
In Riga, there was a driving tour around the city, followed by a walking tour through the Art Nouveau district, the National Opera House, the Freedom
Monument, and the Old Town area. The second concert of the tour took place in St. Peter’s Church in the Old Town. From Riga, the tour continued to Lithuania.
Stops en-route included Rundale Palace, with its beautiful French rose garden, and the Hill of Crosses. Over the years, the Hill of Crosses has come to signify the peaceful endurance of Lithuanian people despite the threats they faced throughout history. The hill stood as a testament to the Lithuanian people's
determination to preserve their religious and national identity during those timesof occupation by other countries, especially the Soviets. In 1993, Pope John Paul ll prayed there and sent a large crucifix which is displayed there. The tour then continued to Vilnius, the capital of Lithuania.
On the first day in Vilnius the group enjoyed a morning city tour which included the Presidential Palace, Vilnius University, Gates of Dawn, Town Hall Square and the Old Jewish Ghetto. Town Hall Square is the location for a Portal, a technology art sculpture which connects to a network of identical sculptures all over the planet. Each Portal is located in a public space, providing a real-time livestream 24/7 that is frequently rotating between different Portal locations on Earth. Tour members were able to observe and wave to people in Poland. After the tour, the group dispersed with free time for shopping and lunch before heading to the hotel to get ready for that evening’s concert. The day ended with the concert in the nearby city of Kaunas, at St. George the Martyr Church / Monastery, which was founded in the 15 th century. After a quick race to the bus in the only rain of the trip, the group enjoyed another lovely dinner at Miestos Sodas Restaurant.
The final full day included an excursion to Trakai, former capital of the Grand Duke of Lithuania and home to the largest Karaite minority town. Following a
lunch of karaim kibins, a type of pastie, the group performed a recital for staff and patients at a Vilnius hospital. The evening brought the final concert before a large audience at St. Catherine’s Church in Old Town Vilnius. This was followed by a farewell dinner at a local restaurant.
The following is a "spot on" summary of our experiences as captured by Nancy Mitchell, one of our singers on the tour.
Ten days in the Baltics: This has been an amazing adventure! We have stayed in 3 different city’s in 3 countries:
-Tallinn, Estonia
- Riga, Latvia and
- Vilnius, Lithuania.
All slightly different yet connected. The weather, while a little warmer than expected and packed for, has been amazing! The food has been rich, delicious and local. We have shared tables as peasants and as royalty. Drank local beers (liquid bread) and sampled some of the best bread I’ve ever tasted! Who knew that beet soup would be so delicious, can be served cold or hot and have a whole festival based on it! We have toured castles, national parks, cities with both old and new “towns”, palaces, gardens, caves, climbed bell towers for the best views and dipped our toes in the Baltic Sea. So many cultural influences here. Each countries citizens are influenced by Finnish, Polish, Russian, German (and more) heritages. So much closer to conflict both in history and in current affairs. You can feel it. It is a beautiful region of the world, the people are welcoming and kind, country side is lush, cities are clean. There is definitely a sense of pride felt in their countries that newly won freedoms exude.
The singing, oh the singing! We sang in 3 cathedrals, a concert hall (used to be a church) and a hospital. The audiences have been BIG! The last evening there was seating for 400+ and people were turned away. The night before was many, many more than that. They have been so welcoming , enthusiastic and appreciative- we even did encores and had to bow. The people love music and have even had a bloodless revolution called “The Singing Revolution” Each performance was such an emotional connection to the local people and visitors alike. Music is such an amazing bond.
This has been a memorable journey. I am so grateful to have shared this time (and a cold ) with some amazing friends both old and new in the Oneida Area Civic Chorale.