Day 7: Autographs and Assemblies
Day 7! After breakfast in the hotel, the singers boarded the bus with our guide from the festival, Allen, and ventured to a local primary school called Escuela Félix Arcadio Montero Monge. The students were waiting outside when we arrived, and they greeted us with big smiles and high-fives. Ensemble performed first at the school assembly, followed by Ancora, with Eric incorporating information about the structure of a choir, different voice parts, and a whole body warm-up.
There were two assemblies back to back, one with the younger students and the other with the upper grades. All ages were very excited to meet the singers, listen to the music, and break out some dance moves during Anchor Bay! Since it had been somewhat interactive with the students learning about choirs, the kids enjoyed answering questions about voice parts and the choirs for cute puzzle prizes. We were then given a tour of the school, where the singers had more opportunities to talk to the thrilled students. Each of them wanted hugs and autographs and were in awe of the choir's talent.
Following our performance, we ate lunch at a restaurant called Doña Tina and returned to our hotel for pool and nap time. It was a great time to recharge and refresh to be fully prepared for tonight’s installment of festival performances.
Our concert in the evening was at the beautiful gothic cathedral Iglesia San Isidro Coronado, which our guide Alan said was, in his opinion, the most beautiful church in Costa Rica. When we saw it standing in the shadow of Isidru (check that) volcano, we could all see why he thought that. And with a ringing acoustic that rivals Grace Cathedral, Bob and Eric made some quick repertoire changes to best use the fantastic opportunity to sing in such a unique space. The concert was magical! First, we heard two choirs from Costa Rica who performed beautiful sets.
Then Ensemble performed, starting with Cantate dominum, then Factum est silentium, and ending with Nagasaki. Fortunately, we used a microphone for the speakers, and the performance was the most powerful I’ve heard yet on this tour. The audience was similarly moved, giving Ensemble a full twenty seconds of silence before a roaring applause.
Ancora followed Ensemble and captivated the audience with Magnum mysterium, Moon Welcome and Abuelita. Their voices rang in the space and reverberated from every corner making for a performance that left the audience rapt.
To finish the concert, Ancora and Ensemble joined together to perform Homeward Bound singing from the stage and among the audience. I don’t think I’ve heard Homeward Bound as beautiful as it was in this space. The audience was truly moved and gave a standing ovation for our singers drowning out the festival organizer as he tried to end the show. We ended the evening with a poolside pizza party! Goodnight and Pura Vida!
Click here for pictures and videos from today’s adventures: https://www.dropbox.com/sh/verl8b32qrnm268/AADSmBuD_SQE2xIgKv7NX2cOa?dl=0