Blog - Puerto Rico

Thursday, 11 March 2010 15:00 Written by Administrator

By: Jessica Rosato

When you come upon a vocal group with incredible talent, it’s hard to contain your enthusiasm.  When you witness such dynamic sound and spirit, it inevitably becomes contagious.  This was my experience in Puerto Rico just last week on a concert tour with choir director, Cava Menzies, and her gifted students from the Oakland School for the Arts in California.   Thirty-one students traveled to the beautiful cities of San Juan and Ponce in hopes of immersing themselves in another culture through their love of song.  A common goal turned in to what I believe to be one of the most enriching cultural exchanges that I have been a part of.  From the moment they stepped on stage at their first friendship concert at The Free School of Music in San Juan, they were met with warm smiles and interested approaches.   The Puerto Rican students welcomed the Oakland singers unconditionally, and applauded their efforts.  It was truly a “friendship concert” with each choir performing their finest repertoire for the other.  The interaction was natural and the admiration was evident.  They even had the opportunity to have lunch together in the school cafeteria following the concert where it became nearly impossible for me to pull them apart so that we could make our next engagement.  It was these same students who met us again in Old San Juan upon our return from Ponce, taking time to show us some of their favorite spots.  This was truly something special.

This gracious atmosphere remained constant throughout the entire tour, traveling with us two hours south to Ponce, a charming Spanish Colonial town.  It was here in Ponce where I feel the magic really intensified.  We were invited to the Cristo Rey Academy where under choir directors Alexander Rodriguez Feliciano and Cava Menzies, the choirs just meshed.   The friendship concert was of course fantastic, as both groups were brilliant, but it is what happened after that really touched me.   After the host choir sang their final song, they walked over to each American student, handed them a Puerto Rican flag, and then two choirs joined together in song, singing “Happy Days.”  It was quite incredible.  To see the choirs so interconnected-- clapping, swaying, smiling, waving their flags-- was priceless.   And the fun didn’t stop there.  All of a sudden, drums were being played, students were dancing while others circled around, and it became clear that real connections were being made.   It was one of the most memorable moments of the tour for me, and something that I hope every group that travels with us will encounter.

There are many other events from the tour that stick in my mind, from hiking to La Mina Falls in El Yunque National Rainforest to group dinners at wonderful restaurants to afternoons simply spent at some of Puerto Rico’s most beautiful beaches, but I can honestly say without hesitation that the cultural exchange that resulted between these two student bodies is paramount.  It was in Puerto Rico where two cultures came together, and where with great attention and investigation, they found that they were not so different after all.  What they found instead were new beginnings, new friendships and hopefully connections that will link them together in the future.  I know I did.