Tour 2010: Day 4

This morning we said farewell to Saint Joseph's University and embarked on mission: three cities, one day. After a three hour drive, we found ourselves out of Philadelphia and into Frederick, Maryland, home of our accompanist, Emily Howe. We arrived at All Saints Episcopal Church, and were greeted by singers from the Chamber Choir of the Frederick Children's Chorus, who provided us with wonderful walking tours of the city and ample shopping-time in downtown Frederick.



We rehearsed briefly, and then took to the stage for our concert which was well attended and received by the local Frederick community. After the concert, the Frederick Children's Chorus hosted a wonderful dinner, and performed two pieces for us, "The Storm Is Passing Over" (which some BCC members joined them for) and a uplifting song that they commissioned for their 20th anniversary. We then taught them a favorite song of ours, "We Are Together" which we all sang together. It was wonderful to meet them and we are so grateful that they hosted us so kindly.

Following dinner, we again boarded the bus, and have since arrived and checked in a Georgetown University (making Washington D.C. our third location of the day!). The dorms are lovely and we are very much enjoying our stay thus far. Looking forward to the Campus Tour on Monday. We are headed to bed early as we have a big performance tomorrow -- performing at St. John's Church (Obama's Church) in the morning, and then performing at the Kennedy Center in the evening. Can't wait!

Tour 2010: Day 3

On Friday, we had a great breakfast and then gathered outside our dorm for a Campus Tour of Saint Joseph's University. We were escorted into the SJU Chapel for a presentation about the University and then then broke up into small groups for a campus tour. Our tour guides informed us that SJU's campus recently gained a lot of land and increased in size by 58%, allowing them to add a new music center. Pretty cool! After our tour, we boarded the bus and headed over to the NBC Philadelphia station, where we rehearsed briefly and then entered the studio to tape a performance of "God Bless America". The taping went wonderfully and our performance played later that day on NBC Channel 10.

After performing, we headed back to Saint Joseph's for lunch and a little bit of rehearsing for our evening performance with the Wanamaker Organ. Following rehearsal, we traveled over to the African American Museum in Philadelphia for an African Dance Workshop. We got along wonderfully with our instructor, and believe it or not, weren't even half bad at some of the dancing! Although we got sweatier than anticipated, everyone really enjoyed themselves. Perhaps we'll perform our new moves at a concert soon! (Don't hold your breath for it..)



Following our workshop and tour of the museum, we arrived at Macy's Philadelphia, home of the Wanamaker Organ. The Organ is HUGE -- it has 28,500 pipes! We rehearsed with the fabulous organist, Mr. Conte, and then gave a performance for the shoppers of Macy's, many of which stopped shopping to listen to us sing. It was an awesome experience to sing with such a well-known and massive organ.



We then headed over to Buca de Beppo, a favorite Philly restaurant of ours that we visited when we came here for ACDA East. Upon arriving back at the dorms, we packed up and prepared to give a fond farewell to Saint Joseph's University, as Saturday brings us a trip to Georgetown.

Tour 2010: Day 2

Today we arose bright and early and had a nice and nutritious breakfast at the Saint Joseph's University dining hall. After gathering our belongings, we boarded our beloved Dattco bus and headed over to Independence Hall where we performed patriotic music for a special Naturalization Ceremony, during which 26 people representing 19 different countries were granted U.S. Citizenship. Above we are pictured with Ale Mayorkas, Director of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). We really enjoyed meeting him!

Following our performance, we headed over to Independence Hall for a very informative tour and then broke for lunch, during which small groups of singers got a taste of local Philadelphian cuisine. After lunch we made a liberty bell visit, and then we met up with our fabulous tour guide, Ryan, from the City of Philadelphia Mural Arts Program. Ryan led us on a walking tour around Philly, showing us various murals, and explaining the background and significance of the murals and the Mural Arts Program, an organization that unites artists and communities through a collaborative process, rooted in the traditions of mural-making, to create art that transforms public spaces and individual lives. We stopped to sing in front of a mural, which Ryan recorded for a Mural Arts Program initiative and said he would put on the internet soon. It'll be blogged when it's up! Pictured below is the mural we sang "We Are Together" in front of.



After our tour, we walked to the City Tavern, a restaurant that serves authentic 18th century cuisine in a history filled building Dining in a favorite hot-spot of John Adams and friends made us feel apart of history. Following dinner, we headed over to the Penn's Landing area, where we bonded on the boardwalk for some time before heading back to the dorms for a good nights sleep.

Tour 2010: Day 1

Tour 2010 is officially underway! This morning we made a smooth departure from BCC Central around 10am, and were on our way to Philadelphia. We quickly discovered that our bus has Wi-Fi which was great news as the seven hour bus ride got a little bit boring after a while. Needless to say, we were very glad to arrive at St. Joseph's University around 6:00 pm, and settled into our dorm rooms before having a great BBQ dinner in the SJU Student Center. After dinner we brushed up on the music we'll be singing tomorrow at Independence Hall for a Naturalization Ceremony -- rumor has it multiple US Secretaries will be there! We can't wait to welcome immigrants into the US with song. Check the twitter to review the updates from today, and to get frequent updates in the upcoming days! http://www.twitter.com/bcchorus

Social Media Tips: BCC Style!

BCC is embarking on a tour of the East Coast tomorrow! Want to know what we're up to all the time? Well you CAN! See below for all sorts of info on experiencing our tour with us.

Facebook: BCC has a facebook fanpage called "Boston Children's Chorus". To find it, log in to facebook and search Boston Children's Chorus in the search box. The BCC fanpage's icon is the BCC Logo with a black background. Here's the direct link: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Boston-Childrens-Chorus/122489444431397?ref=ts

Twitter: Twitter is a great resource for frequent updates! The BCC twitter is public and can be viewed by anyone online at http://www.twitter.com/bcchorus. To get SMS updates (recommended), a twitter account is needed. It's really easy to create!

To create a twitter account and get BCC updates texted to your phone:
1. Send a text message to the phone number 40404 with the word START
2. Twitter will send you a reply and ask you to reply with the word SIGNUP to create a new account. Send SIGNUP
3. Next twitter will ask you to pick a username. It should be less than 15 characters. Reply with the username you want.
4. You will get a confirmation (or Twitter will ask you to pick a different name if that one is already in use) and will be asked to reply with a password.
5. Your Twitter account has been created!
6. Then, text FOLLOW bcchorus to 40404 and you will start receiving BCC updates via text message!

If you already have a twitter account, but have not set up Mobile Twitter:
1. Send a text message to the phone number 40404 with the word START
2. Twitter will send you a reply and ask you to reply with your username.
3. Then, when prompted, reply with your password.
4. Twitter will ask you to send OK if you want to use Twitter on your phone. Send OK!
5. Then, text FOLLOW bcchorus to 40404, and you will start receiving BCC tweets on your phone.

If you have twitter and have already set up Mobile Twitter:
1. Text FOLLOW bcchorus to 40404, and you will start receiving BCC updates via text message!

Blog: As always, the BCC blog will be updated nightly at http://www.bostonchildrenschorus.blogspot.com