Korean
Tour stories 2013
The
boys have been amazing. Their level of maturity, their cooperative spirit,
their endurance - in every way they made us very proud.
We found Korea to be very clean. The people are disciplined and yet they are warm, generous and friendly. The Korean Choir (6 boys out of 60 singers!) is outstanding; they rehearse 3 days a week for 2 hours each and many commute 1-2 hours to rehearsal. They also know how to have fun. The audiences are wildly enthusiastic and participate in performances by whooping, laughing and yelling. We agreed that we wanted to incorporate the Korean rehearsal discipline into Ragazzi culture.
Seoul is dense (44,000 people per square mile) and the buildings are sky high. Most of the people live in apartments. There didn't seem to be any suburbs although when we traveled to Suncheon (6 hours south) we saw miles of greenery. The youth hostel in Suncheon was in a lovely wooded area. The boys stayed in rooms of 5-6 and they slept on the floor on comforters (see picture attached). We learned that traditionally Koreans sleep on the floor which is heated in the winter. They seemed to survive that fine. I never heard a complaint about this or about any other difficulties.
The heat was intense and constant. The air conditioning varied in effectiveness, with the bus being the most comfortable and the eating halls less so. With the humidity we were ringing wet most of the time-especially when we had outdoor concerts. The boys performed every day often in the midst of confusing schedule changes, attenuated rehearsal time and varying stage set ups. We sang mostly informal music as we were not given rehearsal time except for 10 minute staging times. I believe we will receive DVDs of at least some of the performances.
We had the opportunity to observe the beautiful Korean traditional music with costumes (see picture) and at the fair we all got to try on the traditional Korean dress. One of our favorite Korean experiences was watching the dancing drummer who played on the massed choir pieces. He moved with every stroke as he pounded the rhythms adding immensely to the excitement of the performance. We also saw fan dances and hat twirling. There will be many pictures for you to enjoy seeing these things.
The home stay families cared for the boys as if they were their own sons. Many cried when they had to say goodbye. Some of the hosts were at the fair on Thursday where they were eager to meet us, the staff.
Most of the choirs had more adult chaperons (who had to pay their own way) and we are so very grateful to our guides who shepherded our boys through all the events, made sure they had the right clothes, made them go to sleep at night and wake up in the morning. At the end of ten days we felt a love for each other as well as gratitude.
There is a lot of ceremony as each official welcomes us. Today when we left Suncheon for the airport, representatives of the mayor thanked us for making the trip to their city and for accepting their accommodations. He said that while we must leave, our music will remain in their hearts. He talked about how people from so many countries and languages could come together and unite through music. He said that he hoped this would continue to help bring the world together.
Last night our boys wanted to initiate a final evening with all the other kids to share their favorite songs. During the bus ride back to the hostel from the Garden Expo where we had sung, Ragazzi boys shared their favorite experiences. Comments ranged from "I liked the heat" to "It was wonderful to share music with people from other cultures and to learn about them." Ragazzi initiated the group sharing where all the singers gathered together. It was a deeply emotional moment for all.
The food (see picture of my breakfast at the hostel): now we know why Koreans are lean. The basic diet is rice with a variety of sprouts, seaweed, sometimes with some processed meat or an egg. Sometimes there is soup. The hosts provided the boys with snacks and one night brought them pizza after a late night concert.
We found Korea to be very clean. The people are disciplined and yet they are warm, generous and friendly. The Korean Choir (6 boys out of 60 singers!) is outstanding; they rehearse 3 days a week for 2 hours each and many commute 1-2 hours to rehearsal. They also know how to have fun. The audiences are wildly enthusiastic and participate in performances by whooping, laughing and yelling. We agreed that we wanted to incorporate the Korean rehearsal discipline into Ragazzi culture.
Seoul is dense (44,000 people per square mile) and the buildings are sky high. Most of the people live in apartments. There didn't seem to be any suburbs although when we traveled to Suncheon (6 hours south) we saw miles of greenery. The youth hostel in Suncheon was in a lovely wooded area. The boys stayed in rooms of 5-6 and they slept on the floor on comforters (see picture attached). We learned that traditionally Koreans sleep on the floor which is heated in the winter. They seemed to survive that fine. I never heard a complaint about this or about any other difficulties.
The heat was intense and constant. The air conditioning varied in effectiveness, with the bus being the most comfortable and the eating halls less so. With the humidity we were ringing wet most of the time-especially when we had outdoor concerts. The boys performed every day often in the midst of confusing schedule changes, attenuated rehearsal time and varying stage set ups. We sang mostly informal music as we were not given rehearsal time except for 10 minute staging times. I believe we will receive DVDs of at least some of the performances.
We had the opportunity to observe the beautiful Korean traditional music with costumes (see picture) and at the fair we all got to try on the traditional Korean dress. One of our favorite Korean experiences was watching the dancing drummer who played on the massed choir pieces. He moved with every stroke as he pounded the rhythms adding immensely to the excitement of the performance. We also saw fan dances and hat twirling. There will be many pictures for you to enjoy seeing these things.
The home stay families cared for the boys as if they were their own sons. Many cried when they had to say goodbye. Some of the hosts were at the fair on Thursday where they were eager to meet us, the staff.
Most of the choirs had more adult chaperons (who had to pay their own way) and we are so very grateful to our guides who shepherded our boys through all the events, made sure they had the right clothes, made them go to sleep at night and wake up in the morning. At the end of ten days we felt a love for each other as well as gratitude.
There is a lot of ceremony as each official welcomes us. Today when we left Suncheon for the airport, representatives of the mayor thanked us for making the trip to their city and for accepting their accommodations. He said that while we must leave, our music will remain in their hearts. He talked about how people from so many countries and languages could come together and unite through music. He said that he hoped this would continue to help bring the world together.
Last night our boys wanted to initiate a final evening with all the other kids to share their favorite songs. During the bus ride back to the hostel from the Garden Expo where we had sung, Ragazzi boys shared their favorite experiences. Comments ranged from "I liked the heat" to "It was wonderful to share music with people from other cultures and to learn about them." Ragazzi initiated the group sharing where all the singers gathered together. It was a deeply emotional moment for all.
The food (see picture of my breakfast at the hostel): now we know why Koreans are lean. The basic diet is rice with a variety of sprouts, seaweed, sometimes with some processed meat or an egg. Sometimes there is soup. The hosts provided the boys with snacks and one night brought them pizza after a late night concert.
A glimpse
of the confusing scheduling can be seen in one example. At the closing concert
in Suncheon which was held outside at the amazing Expo Garden, I was told to
choose a boy and come on stage to stand for a speech by the mayor. When I went
back to find my place, I was told that I wasn’t needed. No one remembered
telling me to come. The director of the Taiwan choir was also there and
although she didn’t speak English, we looked at each other and understood that
we both had been given confusing directions. We went to the back of the arena
and met Hee Churl, the music director of World Vision. He shrugged and laughed.
So I went back to my seat. About 5 minutes later, someone came up to me and
rushed me up on stage. Hee Churl came along and we wended our way through the
orchestra to climb up for the ceremony. Things changed constantly.
I
wanted to share with you the pride we all felt in your sons. In spite of
confusing changes in schedules, occasionally odd food, strange sleeping arrangements, stifling heat,
daily performance pressure, the boys remained cooperative and cheerful. They
were mature and represented the United State beautifully. They were strong in
their endurance through difficult situations and willing to conform to the
necessary regimentation that tour requires.
I
am so grateful that you allowed them to share this experience with our singing
colleagues from other countries. We made new friends and we learned a lot not
only about other cultures, but also about music and performing.
