Keystone State Boychoir

From the latest CY Sampler:

All three major TV stations were on hand to help welcome Keystone State Boychoir and special guest Inge Auerbacher back from the 2017 tour to Germany and the Czech Republic. Take a look at this coverage by CBS3 Eyewitness News.

Here is NBC10’s coverage:

Andrew P., a newly graduated KSB member, reflects,”My recent KSB concert tour to Germany and the Czech Republic was a powerful experience. Traveling with Inge and hearing her story firsthand gave me a more meaningful understanding of the Holocaust than anything I’ve learned in school, and I deeply appreciated her message of hope for the future.”

There’s a photo album on the KSB Facebook Page – take a look!

The boys are off with Martha and the chaps enjoying a well deserved day at a water park outside of Prague.  I stayed back to blog – hardly a minute to write when you’re singing with, and keeping safe and sound, 59 boys.

Speaking of the boys, they have done a noble job of absorbing a lot of very heavy subject matter on the Holocaust and specifically, Terezin.  While we’ve attempted to moderate the information flow based on age, and certainly the boys have been well prepared to handle the topic gradually over time, there’s no way around it – this is heavy stuff for any age, let alone young people. They more than deserve a day off to just be boys on a careless summer day.  What better way to achieve that than Europe’s largest water park?

Yesterday we had the great honor of being guided around Terezin with Inge.  Everywhere we walked, we were regaled with stories of her time there – filled with hardship and tragedy, though she pointed out that there was always hope.  As Stephen Schwartz wrote in the song “When You Believe”, though hope is frail it’s hard to kill.  Inge commented to me at one point that “she doesn’t know why she’s here, why she made it.” The odds of survival were so low (out of 15,000 children, 100 survived), and fate was so random with no rhyme or reason.  And yet, yesterday, it was clear to me why Inge made it – to charge 59 American boys in a most profound way that they are now her ambassadors, to pass onto the next generation the warning of what can happen when hate prevails.

There were many incredible moments yesterday. Some highlights:

-when we arrived at Terezin, Inge had us hold hands, commenting that if people had always held hands, there might not be a Terezin Museum

 

-taking a photo with Inge under the “Arbeit Macht Frei” entrance

-standing in a small, one room living quarter for 90, realizing that the number of people who were forced to live there was the same as all of our boys, chaperones, staff plus 16 more people.  one toilet. wooden bunks. #incomprehensible

-seeing the cell where the assassin who started World War I was imprisoned. (our history buffs were blissed out)

-walking through the extensive tunnels that are part of the Terezin fortress walls. #boyheaven

-having the KSB Vedem boys perform Vedem poems in the very room where the Vedem boys lived and published their magazine. #surreal

-having Immanuel perform a late Brahams piano piece in the attic of the Magdeburg Barracks, where many of the musical performances that took place in Terezin were rehearsed, often in secret – Verdi’s Requiem, Bizet’s Carmen, Smetana’s The Bartered Bride, Krasa’s Brundibar.  Normally the attic is off limits to tourists but we had a VIP among us – Inge! It was amazing to add our music to that space – with music from past years that represented hope to so many – including many children.  Inge added that never in a million years would the Terzin kids, who felt like the world had forgotten them, could have imagined that a bunch of American boys would return there to do just that – remember them.

-the Grads singing Oseh Shalom at the Terezin moratorium and crematorium. (over 50,000 Jews died in Terezin itself, and another 90,000 perished after being transported out of Terezin to camps East)

It was incredibly touching to see the boys instinctively take care of Inge throughout the day.  They freely offered her hugs.  Without instruction, they would take her hand, or her arm, and walk with her along the cobbled streets of Terezin. They would ask if she was okay.  They would put her arm around her when she would cry a bit, perhaps when she would remember a friend who didn’t make it.  And sometimes the boy showing Inge the most tenderness was the boy none of us would guess had the capacity to do so.  And that is the beauty of tour – it can bring out the very best in the boys.  #growth

Know that all of your boys are okay, and that, whatever loss of innocence has resulted in their journey, they are forever changed by this experience in ways that are important to our world today, where hate continues to prevail.  The ways in which Terezin and knowing (and loving) Inge will inform their lives, will mostly be subtle, but they will be profound and vital.  The ways that it has transformed their lives is real and permanent and invaluable.

And at the end of the day, Inge was happy to have dessert, as were the boys, and in the great tradition of KSB tours, there were Magnum bars for one and all, and so we continue on the road together.

More later…

Greetings from Prague –

We’ve had plenty of success in posting on facebook and instagram, but wifi insufficient for much else. The boys are off singing at the Hagibor retirement home today, and I am staying behind to find better wifi than what’s in our hostel lobby, where Frank Sinatra’s Christmas album is playing. Sorta strange to be listening to “Walking in a Winter Wonderland” today…

To catch up:

Sunday’s concert – The boys had the great privilege of performing in the theater of Schwetzingen Palace, the summer home of the princes of this region of Germany. Built in 1753, Mozart performed here when he was 7 years old! In honor of that, our accompanist, Immanuel Mykyta-Chomsky wowed the sold out house playing the final movement of Mozart’s 12th Piano Sonata

 

 

Between the rehearsal and the concert, the boys walked the formal gardens that are reminiscent of Versaille with reflecting pools, water spouting statuary, and all manner of topiary, etc.

We shared the concert with three other choirs, one the age of the trainers and apprentices, one the age of Towne and Concert Choir, and a PG Motet-aged girlchoir. We sang two sets, and of course finished with the typical South African set outside the venue. A typical tour treat is hearing new boys take on solos like Andrew P singing “Baba Yetu” and Calvin W.  singing “In the Still of the Night.

The concert was sold out, and the audience not disappointed! The boys’ host families turned out in full force with the affection that had grown quickly over the first four nights of the tour. As usual, the boys have been terrific ambassadors of our choir and our country. The audience was delighted and impressed with the diversity of repertoire, the quality of the singing, and the excitement of watching the choir, especially so to an audience more accustomed to boys standing still with their hands behind their back. A perfect end to the first leg of the tour, made even more so with the addition of KSB alumni Alexander and Konstantin Minch joining the grads for a few pieces. Alexander and Konstantin, sons of our ace tour planner Angela Wende, sang and toured with KSB for many years before moving back to Germany.

 

Nuremberg

On Monday we said goodbye to Heidelberg, boarded the buses for Nuremberg, a halfway point between Heidelberg and Prague. Boys continued having their individual time talking with Inge about “I Am A Star” and her experiences in Terezin. For a couple of bus rides, I’ve been sitting in front of Inge, and so have had the chance to eavesdrop, and have been impressed to a boy with their thoughtful, insightful questions and with their engagement with Inge, which always ends with a hug.

First stop in Nuremberg was a formal reception in the mayor’s office. After the reception, a walk through the old town led to a detour into the Church of St. Sebald, a gothic vaulted ceiling, just the kind of space for a boychoir! Didn’t have to be asked twice when a church staff wondered if the boys would sing. Zikr and Ani Ma’amin may not have been what they expected, but the boys sounded so beautiful in the space that expectations were exceeded.

Our final stop was a tour of the Palace of Justice, including Courtroom 600, site of the Nuremberg Trials of 1946, the first time in history when war criminals were tried for crimes against humanity. This stop was especially meaningful for me, since my 95 year old dad, who served in World War II in the 1258th Army Engineers, was part of the American team who prepared the Palace of Justice for the trials in the summer of 1945. It was quite moving to stand where he stood at the end of the war, at an age not much older than the grads. I shared his story with the boys, reading a text that he sent me with his memories, adding the voice of an American GI to Inge’s stories.

Monday concluded with a delicious dinner where the boys could make their own choices from the menu, and then were turned out into the square to buy some ice cream afterwards. Back at our hostel, we turned the corner from homestays to what the rest of the trip will be, hostels and hotels!

On Tuesday, once again we loaded the buses, this time to Prague, but with a first stop at the Nuremberg Rally Grounds, to witness the site of Hitler’s rise to power. Once again, the boys were thoughtful in processing this experience. Alex G. pondered the dissonance between the quiet park grounds with the intensity of the hatred that once filled the place where we walked. At our final stop, the stands where Hitler spoke and where the allies tore down the Nazi swastika, we sang Ani Ma’amin and the Star Spangled Banner, marking our visit in song.

 

 

Prague – longest leg of the tour.

We’re settled into our home for the week, and have started to explore this most beautiful of European cities. In addition to planned performances, the boys have been singing everywhere! If you’re following us on instagram and facebook you’ve seen the video evidence, everywhere from Prague’s iconic Charles Bridge to the packed restaurant where we had dinner on the first night.

The mornings have included rehearsals and performances at Hagibor, a project of the Jewish Community in Prague, both a retirement home and a day care. We’ve been joined by students of the Lauder School, which originally served the community as a Jewish orphanage in the pre-WWII era, and was site of the first performance of Brundibár.

Yesterday afternoon, the boys sang the national anthem at an early July 4th party at the US Ambassador’s residence, then filled themselves with endless food from Burger King, KFC, Starbucks, etc, and rubbed elbows with diplomats and generals. #tourheaven say the veteran singers and chaps!

It’s a rainy afternoon, so the plan to do some sightseeing may be replaced with a movie before we make our way to the Spanish Synagogue for this evening’s concert. The boys are having a great time – everyone is happy and healthy, well fed, and sounding great.

Thanks to all the chaps for their photos. We will keep adding more pictures to this post as wifi allows.

 

-Martha

 

 

 

Hello from Germany!

We have completed our second full day of tour and all is well.  It takes a few days to “get the wheels on the bus.”  Jet leg to get over.  Extreme heat to deal with.  Lots of protocols and tour rules to follow. Grace period is now over and fines will begin tomorrow.  We’ll start at 1 Euro.  Fines amounts for infractions will increase as the tour goes on.  The reality is, hitting their spending money is the fastest way to get their attention.  And following the rules of tour is not just about order.  It is vital to keeping the boys safe and sound.  And of course, the boys always have the opportunity to earn their money back.  With stand out performance faces, offering a kind word or performing a random act of tour kindness…

Our itinerary has been quite full with singing and cultural opportunities. A full schedule is crucial for happy boys free from homesickeness.  They need to stay busy and to fall into bed tired.

And of course the homestay experience is a great gift.  The chance to live as other cultures live is invaluable and will shape the boys, giving them a global, open, tolerant perspective as they move through their lives.  Look for photos of your boys and their homestays soon.

Tomorrow, Friday, is our first full concert – joint with our hosts, the Heidelberg Youth  Choir.  Up until now it’s been schools concerts (very well received) and mayoral meet and greets.  Germany loves its mayors!  #rathouse.

And can I tell you how INCREDIBLE it is travelling with Inge.  She is AWESOME. She is always POSITIVE and HAPPY. A great lesson for all of us, considering what she’s been through.  What a great gift to me.  When the boys are complaining that “it sucks” that they didn’t get to have ice cream, I simply invite them to sit with Inge and have her tell them how much “it sucked” to go to Terezin.   Inge also has an amazing sense of humor and remarkable perspective about her journey – and a great capacity to forgive and see the good in people.

The boys are able to sit with Inge during bus rides – we always keep her seat empty for visitors.   They can ask her questions that come up as they’re reading her very famous book “I Am A Star.”  Once they finish the book, she rewards them with a book signing.  And then they get the privilege of holding the Star of David she wore in Terezin.  I have told the boys that THIS is their college essay.  To travel with a Survivor, literally following her journey from Germany to Terezin.  Wow.

Most lovely of all, Inge trades in hugs.  That’s all she asks in return for sharing her story.  And the boys freely give them.

#sweet

#powerful

#IngeHugs

More later…

KSB takes to the road on Tuesday, June 20 for a 15 night/16 day tour of Germany and the Czech Republic. The boys will be visiting and singing in Mannheim, Heidelberg, Mosbach, Stuttgart, Schwetzingen, Nuremberg, Prague, Terezin, and Frankfurt, including a sold-out Grand Concert at Rokokotheatre Schwetzingen Palace! Follow the tour on the KSB Tour page or the see the latest blog posts and itinerary on the Germany/Czech Republic tour page! And receive notifications of new Blog posts by subscribing to KSBlog – sign up to the right on the KSBlog page.

With minimal wifi,  we will have to wait until we get home to see the rest of Laurie’s pictures.

Back in Helsinki after our third and final overnight ferry, with our final concert on Sunday night, and the end of tour.

St. Petersburg left a huge impression on all of us such that everyone is struggling to come up with words to express what we just experienced. From the Winter Palace to the Cathedral on Spilled Blood to the Hermitage,  it’s just so much larger than life.

We saw the city from the top of St Isaac Cathedral, from the water, and from walking between our various destinations. The scale of the city certainly reflects the dreams of the Russian Imperial family, especially Peter the Great and Catherine the Great, as we learned from various tour guides.

The Hermitage is a pretty good representation of the scale of St Petersburg, and the grandeur we experienced. To start with, it’s by far the largest museum in the world, with over 3 million objects in the collection. Add to that, one of the buildings is the Winter Palace, which has 1,057 rooms. One of the Ceremonial Halls that we saw was so big that boys decided the they could have played soccer in there when the weather was bad, and would have room to spare. And then there’s the chapel. So much gold…

Throughout, we’ve enjoyed our connections with Russians. Remember the response of the audience to the post-concert South African sing, where they sang back to us? That happened on Friday, too, in a most unexpected way. We had gathered on one of the bridges to head for some shopping at an open air market near the Cathedral on Spilled Blood. The bridge is a natural destination for wedding photos, with the cathedral in the background. As the photographer captured the bride and groom’s special day, Mr Fisher called the boys to standing order, and started Shumeyela, and the bride and groom started dancing, clearly loving the serenade for their photo session. Then the grads surrounded another couple and sang “In the Still of the Night”. As the boys started walking away, the groom, the bride and a couple of their friends broke into song themselves, a beautiful song in that incredible Russian harmony. We returned the gesture, and the grads sang Salvation is Created, in Russian. Cheers back and forth, with good wishes for the bride and groom, and for our safe travels.

Final view of the port of St Petersburg, with a vestige of Soviet days – Wiley pointed out the sign that reads Leningrad in Russian

 

 

 

When last we blogged, Keystone State Boychoir was enjoying a final day in the idyllic quiet of Rättvik, Sweden.

Since then? Two overnight ferries, 600 miles across the Baltic Sea, a brief stop in Helsinki, and now? Russia!

There’s been lots of informal singing, lots of rehearsing. Boat Adventures! A brief pass through Helsinki, with more to come on Sunday.

And then we got to Russia.

St Petersburg is beautiful with a grandeur and scale unlike any other city. Our first day was taken up with getting everyone settled in four different hotels, and then in getting ready for the biggest concert on this tour at Kapella Hall. St. Petersburg deserves nothing but the best for KSB, including a great venue, even if we have to rent it ourselves.

What you can’t see in pictures, or even in videos, is how great the choir sounds on this tour, and how enthusiastically the boys have been received by the audience at every concert, each one more than the last. Last night was no exception! The Russians LOVED the choir, from the prelude — our two talented pianists, Ben and Immanuel each played a piece —  to the end, an additional 45 minutes of singing in the courtyard outside the concert.

Over the past couple of years, the South African set has moved from its longstanding place at the end of the concert to a post-concert party outside the venue. On this tour, Mr Fisher has been introducing the final(ish) song, Shosholoza by asking the audience to name a song with a similar place in their country’s culture as Shosholoza for South Africans. Last night, the Russians did more than name the song – the whole audience sang the song themselves. It’s a rare moment on tour when the audience sings back to the boys!

A final note to highlight one of our boys who has been a star on this tour, and who leaves us today, not only from the concert tour (heading to Italy for a performance) but also (for now) from KSB, as his family is moving to Texas. Immanuel Mykyta-Chomsky joined KSB as a trainer in 2009, is one of the 8 Sopranos, and for this tour, is our accompanist. In addition to being a standout singer, Immanuel is an accomplished pianist, and an amazing young musician. His sight reading of the 1st movement of Bernstein’s Chichester Psalms during rehearsal last week will be the stuff of KSB legends. While we say goodbye to Immanuel today, we expect that we haven’t seen the last of him wearing a KSB jacket, at least as an accompanist!

Lots of sightSINGing today!

Once again, the wifi is very slow, but at least we have some!

We’ll be adding photos to this blog, hopefully tonight. For now, keep an eye on facebook and instagram for pictures!

 

 

 

 

Update – Pictures uploaded!

Quick post about yesterday, our last day in Rättvik!

After morning rehearsals, we headed into town for some shopping, then to the summer luge – fun!

 

 

It’s been a perfect weekend of Swedish tradition and basically Boychoir Camp!

On to our next adventure!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Singers began the morning with a hearty breakfast and rousing rehearsal with Dr. Dilworth. At breakfast, chaperones overheard singers discussing their overall rating of the festival. One singer suggested the festival earned 4 out of 5 stars because the hotel air-conditioning was a bit chilly at times, another chimed in, “Yes, but don’t forget the pool.” They came to consensus of 4.5 stars!

Singers continued to receive positive praise today regarding their solo performance from peers . Without prompting, many singers socialized with other choir members, further expanding their circles. Their joy and energy was contagious!

After a fairly busy rehearsal day on Saturday, singers were excited for Sunday afternoon free time. After lunch, they began with choice activities (swimming or mall shopping), and then attended Festivall, a juried artisan fair including more than 100 artists.  Singers asked questions of those specializing in wood carving, soaps, photography, painting, and jewelry-making, One singer sat very still while an artist sketched his portrait.

Singers returned to the hotel for a lovely meal in the ballroom followed by the last solo sharing from two additional choirs—directly after, they folk danced in squares, long ways sets, mixers, and circles with live traditional music and a well-seasoned caller. It was inspiring to watch the singers demonstrate new facility with right, left, and two hand turns, do-si-dos, cast aways, and bridges. The dancing was great fun!

Day 3 was another wonderfully joyful day. We look forward to our last full day in Charleston where we will perform together in the Civic Center on Monday evening.

Sunday morning, ancient bells rang, (oldest bell — from the 15th century), church boats arrived carrying villagers from around the lake, fiddlers played traditional music, as the locals gathered for their Sunday church service, many in the Swedish attire specific to Rättvik. We learned each town has its own style, with unique color scheme, patterns of stripes, and needlework. The lace is handmade, and women weave the front piece of the skirt. The men of Rättvik wear long black coats, and yellow pants gathered at the knees, with three red pom-poms, though no one remembers why. We experienced Swedish Sunday morning, much as it has been for a centuries.

KSB sang for a well attended service, perhaps in part since many people had seen the choir at the concert the night before, which by the way, was fantastic. The chemistry between choir and nearly full house was electric, with every song better than the one before until the place nearly exploded after Praise His Holy Name. They liked it so much that if there’s enough of an audience, we’ll sing in Rättvik church again Monday night.

 

Between Friday’s Midsommar celebrations and today’s service, we’ve had a real taste of traditional Sweden. Later today, we encountered another reality of Sweden in 2016. When Europe was inundated with those escaping ISIS last year, 160,000 people sought asylum in Sweden, second only to Germany. As a result, even small towns like Rättvik are housing a few hundred Afghani and Syrian refugees.

While considering the possible audience for another concert, we learned that no one from either of the refugee camps, both within walking distance of the venue, heard the boys sing Saturday night. Through the music director here, we connected with people who speak English at both camps, with a plan to bring the grads to sing a couple of pieces at the camps, with an invitation to Monday’s concert.

Dinner time would be an obvious time, but it’s Ramadan, and sunset isn’t until after 10:30pm, so we should come earlier. After a nice reception from a dozen or so men at the first camp, who enjoyed the boys’ singing, we were told at the 2nd camp that there didn’t seem to be much interest in Monday’s concert. A few women and their children sat at an outside terrace of this hotel—turned refugee camp, so we figured we’d just sing for them. Then the boys started Zikr, and some curious men came outside to see what was going on. As the boys moved on to sing In the Still of the Night, a man asked if they would sing Zikr again, saying that it was so beautiful, that it would mean so much to them, so how could we refuse. 2nd round of Zikr finished, we said good night, and hoped to see them at the concert, but the men were so pleased that out came cookies and dates for the boys, handshakes and hugs, and plenty of pictures. Not sure that many will show up at the concert, but once again the power of music…

 

On the way home, the traditional tour ice cream treat – MAGNUM BARS! – and a walk on langbyggvaggen, literally the long bridge to the Steamship dock, where we had to test just how shallow the water really is.

 

While the grads were at the refugee camp,  the trebles had a great game of capture the flag, had sectional rehearsals beginning  working on the First Movement of Bernstein’s Chichester Psalms for next season, followed by more food and their own round of ice cream!

 

Hard to believe but we’re half way through this tour!