The tour began on a Monday with an airport arrival time of 2:55AM. It never ceases to amaze me in situations like that, that there are people who are working at that time. On the plane they played a safety video on the little televisions. At one point the flight attendant actress says to the passenger actor, "Sir! There is no smoking on this flight!" "Oh I'm sorry, I didn't know," the passenger says as he puts out his cigarette. There was quite a chuckle aboard at the thought of a choir member trying to smoke on our plane at 3:30 in the morning.
We arrived in Norfolk, VA, and went to the arena where our concert would be held that evening. We sat in the stands and watched the final parts of the stage lighting being set up and convicts in orange jumpsuits setting up chairs on the ground level. Then it hit me. I was alone (well with 580 other people). I didn't have to help set up the chairs or make the lunch or keep my kids out of the way/safe. My job was to sit in those chairs and do whatever I wanted: read, do puzzles, listen to my ipod, write in my journal, and snooze, or go for a walk in the arena (and I did all of these), until someone told me it was time to go eat lunch or get my horn out for the rehearsal. It was a very bizarre sensation to be relieved of all my normal life's duties and be Madelyn, horn player in OTS, on tour for the next 8 days. A pretty sweet thing indeed.
view from the hotel in NorfolkI don't think I'd ever been as tired for a concert as I was for the concert that night. I had probably been up for 17 hours when it began. It was still exhilarating, knowing my friends the Omers were in the audience cheering me on. I especially remember when Lloyd Newell, the m.c./host/narrator asked that people in the audience serving in the military stand up. Although with the lights in our eyes, we couldn't really see how many, we could sense it was A LOT of the audience. It made playing the patriotic music very meaningful.
The next morning we visited Colonial Williamsburg. We took off our name tags as we arrived because we would be participating in a great surprise, a flash mob. During one of those plays in the street, a couple men in the choir started singing, out of nowhere. Then a couple more men joined in the harmony, then pretty soon the whole choir was singing this song they had to memorize just for the flash mob performance. It was to the tune of My Country Tis of Thee (or God Save the King) but with some lyrics that were printed in a Virginia newspaper back in the day. It was fun to see other tourists in the crowd looking around, puzzled. Afterward, the President of Colonial Williamsburg told the crowd they had just witnessed a flash mob by the Mo Tab Choir and it was neat to hear an excited murmur run through the crowd and people say, "I thought you had to have practiced, I heard harmony!" Watch a youtube of it here.
me in front of the Governor's Palace at C. WilliamsburgNext, it was on to D.C. The bus I got on had some mechanical issues and a 3 hour trip turned into a 6 hour trip, with lots of stopping on the freeway with no a/c during the stop. Luckily there was still plenty of swordfish for us at dinner at the hotel when we finally arrived. Now's a good time to attempt to convey what it's like traveling in a group of 581 people. If the link to this cool graphic works, you will see that it takes 11 charter buses to move 581 people.
It takes a long time to load 11 buses. A lot of time on the tour is "hurry up and wait", a lot of standing in lines, lines for bathrooms, lines for food, lines for hotel elevators, lines to get on the bus. When that many people are trying to ride the hotel elevator at the same time, you better hope you are on a lower floor so you can take the stairs instead. So a lot of the time is spent at our performance venue. It takes about 8 hours to unload, get on stage, rehearse, leave the stage, eat, change clothes, perform, change clothes, and load the buses again. So clearly, our mission of being good will ambassadors of the Church is taking precedence, as we did our best to give our best performances each night, as opposed to say, spending lots of time sight seeing or relaxing. No, we mostly were doing things relating to the performance. And in no way am I complaining about our schedule. It was a great experience. I'm so blessed to have gone on the tour.
And also....how do they feed us? Mostly at the hotels. All you can eat buffets, at the hotels. By the end it almost seems normal to eat 1 Cup of eggs, 4 strips of bacon, a sausage, potatoes, fresh fruit, oatmeal, and a pastry for breakfast every morning. Then a few hours later eat lunch. Then before you know it, the rehearsal is over and we better eat dinner before the concert. As a seasoned choir member said, "May the force feeding begin!" I know a young man in OTS put on 11 pounds that week, and he was pleased about it! Also, several of the meals were catered at the venue and we were on our own for just a couple of the meals. I thought I would be disappointed about not getting to eat the local food like a Philly Cheesesteak in Philly or buffalo wings in Buffalo. But really, it was nice to not have to worry about finding a place to eat or how to get there. I always chose the seafood at the dinners, which is a stark contrast to my normal life, and I loved it. Don't you guys just get tired of chicken?!
I digress...So D.C.....we had 2 different blocks of sight seeing time. The first day I got a tour of the Capitol in a small group with an intern from Utah Senator Lee's office. It was awesome. We took the underground tunnel from the Senator's office building to the Capitol. The Brunildi galleries and the rotunda and statuary hall were some highlights.
touching a lucky spot in the crypt
the rotunda is so cool
Brigham Young, sitting in a great place in Statuary Hall. His right hand is on a lion's head to symbolize leadership and strength. His left is softer looking, with a wedding ring for love, family, marriage. Every state gets 2 statues in the capitol. Utah has Brigham Young and Philo T. Farnsworth, the inventor of the TV.
We performed that evening at the beautiful, outdoor, Wolftrap theater. Before our rehearsal, Elder Jay E Jensen, of the presidency of the seventy, who accompanied us on the tour, saw me taking a picture of the venue and said, "Taking a picture of a place is fine and nice but how about I take a picture of you with that in the background. Let's make it come to life." Then, a choir member saw him taking a picture of me and offered to take a picture of us together. I'm so happy she did.
The concert at Wolftrap was fabulous. I'm so honored to have performed patriotic music in our nation's capital. I loved knowing a former roommate of mine, Brittany, was in the audience and I wish we could have met up.The next morning I headed to the library of congress. It was so gorgeous. The famous reading room that you've seen in the movies was not open that morning. The limited view from a window wasn't as great as going in would have been, but at least I saw it. I did see Thomas Jefferson's library collection, some important maps from 1507 and 1516, Gutenberg Bible, and a George and Ira Gershwin exhibit. Did you know those brothers could paint and make furniture?
ceiling of the Library of Congress
Then I took a cab to the National Archives. I saw the famous stuff there when my family went to DC but I wanted to see this exhibit, "What's Cooking Uncle Sam?" It was totally interesting, about how the government has affected the American diet. Did you know ketchup was the first really successful processed food? Especially after they figured out how to get it to stop exploding. Heinz figured out that if you use fresh tomatoes, and no baking soda, the bottles wouldn't explode.
Then we loaded the buses and headed to Philadelphia. I had never been there before and I wished we would have had some sight seeing time! At our rehearsal, we were given a special treat. The church is building a temple in downtown Philly and we were shown the artist's rendering of what the temple will look like! It had not been shown to anyone before! So that was cool. The concert at the Mann Center, the outdoor summer home of the Philadelphia Orchestra, was special to me, knowing that so many famous horn players had played on that stage. It was also really special to me because my friend Lyric, from North Carolina, happened to be in town and came to the concert with 4 of her siblings. It means so much more to play a concert when someone you love is in the audience and I was so lucky to have played the first three concerts with people in mind I was playing to in the audience. After the concert I went with Lyric and her siblings on a quick driving tour of downtown Philly and we got milkshakes at this old timey ice cream/soda fountain counter called Franklin's. It was a great night.
The next morning the choir did a short private concert with the Wannamaker Organ at Macy's Department Store in downtown Philly. Yes that's right, the world's largest pipe organ is in the shoe department at Macy's. The tabernacle organist, Richard Elliott, used to work there playing it while he was a student at Curtis. But I have no pictures of this event for you. I may or may not have taken a cab to Trader Joe's and loaded up on some goodies. I got to see that famous LOVE sign on the way! I hope to make it back to the city of Brotherly Love someday soon!
This random Philadelphian started singing "Rockin' my soul in the bosom of Abraham" to us as we waited on the street for the buses to pick us up. That song was ironically, on our concert program.We loaded the buses for our next destination of upstate New York. On our way we stopped very briefly in the Sacred Grove, the place on Joseph Smith's family's farm where as a 14 year old boy, Joseph prayed to know which church he should join. God the Father and Jesus Christ appeared to Joseph in this spot that we deem as sacred and answered his prayer. I had never been there before and maybe was a bit skeptical that a forest in the middle of nowhere, NY would feel different. There were some serious thunderstorms during our drive that ceased about 20 minutes before we arrived so the leaves were wet and heavy. I have to say that visiting the Sacred Grove reconfirmed my testimony that Joseph did experience what he said he did that day. It felt like being in the temple feels, close to God. Just outside the grove, at the Smith family home, the choir assembled and sang "Joseph Smith's First Prayer."
Our hotel was in Buffalo but our two concerts the next day were at the Chatauqua Institute, a truly unique artsy summer town with an outdoor performance venue complete with pipe organ. Chatauqua is full of cute Victorian houses, the first hotel in America to have electricity, it's on a lake, and it was a welcome 65 degrees. Burrrr! We did two concerts that day to packed houses of enthusiastic crowds, as always. And I was not without some connections, even to this tiny town to which I had never been. Brian's friend from grad school's mother-in-law came and found me and we chatted over lunch! Also, my grandmother grew up in Buffalo, NY and I found out her sister came to concerts at Chatauqua all the time.
The next day was a Sunday. An extra 580 people would overwhelm any ward's church services. After breakfast in the hotel ballroom, we cleared our dishes and had a Sacrament meeting, right there at our round tables. Those were the best Sacrament hymns had ever sounded! Elder Jensen spoke. One of the things he talked about was applying the atonement when taking the Sacrament. He talked about how the people who saw the Savior after He was resurrected, touched him, to make sure He was real and who He said He was, one by one. Every week we take the Sacrament one by one. When I take the bread I am doing what the mulitude did, thrusting their hands into his nail prints and sides, every week. I really liked that.
After the Sacrament meeting, all who wanted could go to Niagara Falls, yet another first for me! We could only see it from the American side but it was definitely something everyone should see in their lifetime.
Our journey was nearly complete as we crossed the border into Canada (can you believe I'd never been to Canada before?!). The first thing I saw in Canada was a Walmart Supercentre! Driving around Lake Ontario, seeing Toronto way in the distance, was very cool. We were on our own for dinner that night and my fun group found our way to an Italian place on the waterfront. Yum. What a great night.
The next day, Monday, was our last day. Our last all-you-can-eat breakfast, lunch and dinner. Our last sound check and two concerts. They were in Roy Thomson Hall, where the Toronto Symphony performs, our only indoor concert hall venue. President Monson came to our final performance. During that concert something amazing happened that no one in the audience was even aware of. There is an incredible soloist in the choir, Alex Boye, who they use for gospel music. He was singing one of his lengthy solo passages in "I Want Jesus to Walk With Me" and he skipped a big section, accidentally. I had never seen our conductor, Mack Wilberg, look panicked before, but one second later he cued and the 300 choir members, all of the same mind, came in at next "oooooo" section, where Alex had skipped to. A seamless recovery. Miraculous? maybe. Amazing? Definitely. Thank goodness there was no orchestra accompaniment on that piece, the concert might have come to a screeching halt. =) Watch a 1 minute video about our Toronto concert here and look for me at 54 seconds in the upper right hand corner! I really looked forward to the choir singing those lyrics "We are weak, but Thou art able" every time. 
with tour roommate Janene in front of the colorful choir women's wardrobe boxes 
Toronto is terrific!(the food baby I'm sporting from 8 days of buffets is not, however)
After the concert we changed clothes and headed to the airport. I was on the third and final plane. Things were pretty backed up so my plane didn't board until 2:20AM! It's just not natural to be up and talking to and meeting new people (!) that late after such a busy day. On the plane I sat next to a man in the choir and his wife (spouses could go for whopping $2K fee!) I hadn't met them before. It was his first tour, he'd been in for one year. He said something to me that has really stuck with me, "I feel like I've been prepared my whole life for this" (singing in the MTC). He said he'd been in other good choirs and gone on tours in hs and college. At first my exhausted, slightly grumpy self thought, 'Well that's a little cocky, who cares if you went on choir tours in high school?' But the more I thought about it, I decided he was right. I mean, can't the same be said of everyone? Our whole life we've been making choices, having experiences, and choosing paths. Aren't we all a sum of all those choices and experiences and paths? We have all been prepared our whole lives for exactly what we are doing right now, for we have chosen it. We have what it is we have wanted most.
And now that I believe this, What do I want to have happen in my life in another year or five or ten years? How can I prepare now for what I want in the future?
I feel so honored and grateful for having gone on this tour. The break from my normal life, the thrill of performing, the joy of seeing new places and eating great food, the social and emotional benefits of conversing with adults, the tender mercy of seeing old friends, and sharing my testimony that God lives and loves us through music, are memories I'll always have. While on the trip, the Spirit confirmed to me that at that moment, I was doing exactly what I was meant to be doing. The afternoon before I left I taught the Relief Society lesson ironically on developing talents. I told them that when I graduated college, I firmly believed that would be the last concert I would ever play. But as I continued to practice and prepare and persevere over the next 5 years, the Lord has blessed me with wonderful performing opportunities beyond my wildest dreams.
And how did Brian and the kids fare? They did great but were ready for me to come home! I came home and kissed my sleeping family, laughed at the ants carrying pieces of chocolate frosting across my kitchen floor, and went to bed.
And now that I believe this, What do I want to have happen in my life in another year or five or ten years? How can I prepare now for what I want in the future?
I feel so honored and grateful for having gone on this tour. The break from my normal life, the thrill of performing, the joy of seeing new places and eating great food, the social and emotional benefits of conversing with adults, the tender mercy of seeing old friends, and sharing my testimony that God lives and loves us through music, are memories I'll always have. While on the trip, the Spirit confirmed to me that at that moment, I was doing exactly what I was meant to be doing. The afternoon before I left I taught the Relief Society lesson ironically on developing talents. I told them that when I graduated college, I firmly believed that would be the last concert I would ever play. But as I continued to practice and prepare and persevere over the next 5 years, the Lord has blessed me with wonderful performing opportunities beyond my wildest dreams.
And how did Brian and the kids fare? They did great but were ready for me to come home! I came home and kissed my sleeping family, laughed at the ants carrying pieces of chocolate frosting across my kitchen floor, and went to bed.
1 comment:
It sounds like and amazing experience! Thanks for sharing.
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