Blog

Welcome to ACFEA’s journal! Read along as we share stories from the road, from the alto section, or from our desk. We’ll also look back on shining moments from our group’s tours.

How to Change Lives (Tour Notes, 2000)

“This may be the most important even ever for the gay community here,” a Moscow concert audience member, in a front page Los Angeles Times article   This article was originally published in our 2000-2001 Tour Notes.   ****   Have a vision. Keep to it. Act on it.  

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Camerata Singers – From Vatican to Vigaun (Tour Notes, 2001)

The entire tour was “various levels of wonderful,” Scott Anderson, director, said.   This article originally appeared in our 2001-2002 Tour Notes.   ****   Italy, Slovenia and Austria were the destinations of the Camerata Singers, an excellent community choir from Pocatello, Idaho, directed by Scott E. Anderson. Many in

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Happy Holidays!

One of the best parts of our job is getting to hear your music. Whether we catch the end of a rehearsal just before a tour meeting, or are relishing the soaring sounds of your concert in a stunning venue somewhere in the world, those moments feel like gifts. This

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Connection in the “Thin Places”

Frank Hallock, Director of Music, United Methodist Church of Vista, talks about the extraordinary moments on his 2019 tour to Ireland. ***** I have always loved travel, from the days of old-fashioned family road trips, to my experiences on several choral tours as both participant and director. These choral tours

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Working Towards Racial Equity

For sixty-five years, ACFEA has worked to provide opportunities for life-changing experiences for people around the world. Celebrating diversity and breaking down barriers is, and always has been, key to that. But we cannot work towards fostering connections without advocating for equity and inclusion for all. The recent events surrounding

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Meet the Courier: Kate

Say hi to Kate! You’ve probably met her if you’ve been on a tour to Poland — or one of the any number of European countries where she couriers. What have you been up to this summer? I have used the quarantine and quieter summer to take care of myself, cook

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Meet Your Courier: Johan

  What do you do when you’re not leading an ACFEA tour?I love listening to music, spending time doing outdoor activities, travelling, watching documentaries, reading about new destinations and – last but not least – looking forward to my next ACFEA tour!   What’s one thing that’s always in your

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“Where the Music Comes From”

A highlight of Penn State University Concert Choir’s tour of Germany was singing Bach’s music in the very places where it was written. Dr. Christopher Kiver, Professor of Music and Director of Choral Activities, Penn State University, tells us more.   ***   In May 2019, the Penn State University

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Together: Here and There

Tour Manager Jeffery Thyer recalls being on tour in Mexico with Singing City, and singing for – and then with! – audiences. *** It’s not often we, ACFEA staff members, get to go on a concert tour as a member of our own group. But when my own home choir,

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“An important moment of cultural ambassadorship”

As musicians, music is one of the major ways we communicate and explore the world. Catherine John, ACFEA Tour Administrator, talks about getting to know a new place by learning about its music, from its people.   ***   In faraway lands, North American musicians encounter instruments that they have

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