Westminster Choir, described as the ” the gold standard for academic choirs in America.”
by the American Record Guide, Sticks to top chorus standards for over 98 years,
and is the regular performance group of Spoleto Festival USA
The concert received enthusiastic reposes from CKWA parents since the registration.
Tonight, this long-awaited concert finally kicked off at the Art Center Theatre in CKWA.
Preface of Concert
『 Interview 』
Westminster Choir Conductor
Mr. Joe Miller
Q: When did you get to touch the chorus?
A: “When I was a child, my parents often took me to various chorus performances and gradually I became interested in it. After that, I began to engaging in the study of chorus techniques and analysis of works.”
Q: How do you understand the art form of chorus?
A: ” Chorus plays the same role as other music forms, the music breaks down the barriers of language between countries, and emotional communication through singing makes people understand the more complex and sensitive feelings that are difficult to describe in the language.”
Q: What did you get from the trip to Kaiwen?
A: “This is a huge opportunity for students of the Westminster Choir College to represent the United States and bring Westminster music to China for the first time.” “The school year begins on September 5th. Students has to prepare in a very short time a challenging and creative project that will connect with audiences with different cultures.”
Q: Where do you think to start a school choir?
A: To find a leader who has dreams and pursuits for music, he should pass this enthusiasm to his students.
Principal Martin talked about the concert.
Principal Martin believed that the concert promoted friendly exchanges between the two schools.
Kaiwen will pay a visit to the Westminster Choir College in the United States in the future.
Of course, the most important thing is that our children have taken a very rich artistic nutrient in this concert.
They have a deeper understanding of classical music and classical art through their personal experience.
School Tour & Workshop
The students of two schools exchanged their understanding of music in the rehearsal. Kaiwen’s children took on the school tour and took the Westminster students on a tour of the campus.
During the visit, Westminster students became very interested in our campus and expressed a great interest in the campus environment and the works displayed.
The Climax of the Concert
『 Fantastic Performance and Enjoying the Song 』
Now, with a passion and respect for the classical music, let’s indulge in the sounds of the Westminster choir.
Enjoying the Songs
《Hor ch’el ciel e la terra e ‘l vento tace》
It is also a poem, which reflects the Italian romance in the Renaissance.
The lyrics was abstracted from the 164th poem of Il Canzoniere of the Italian poet Petrarch.
“Singing the Scenery”, the initial low and resonant sound was transmitted into the audience,
telling us that the whole earth was in a silent moment.
“singing by the heart”, the long singing voice brought us into the poet’s remarks,
telling the poet’s inner restlessness which caused by emotions and love and hate in a high and low tone,
which was in stark contrast with the silent environment in previous part.
《 Water Night 》
水之夜
Water is the most popular metaphor. It stands for softness and symbolizes fantasy.
The chorus expressed extreme emotions through the ups and downs of the tone.
Through the singing, you could see a image of people who wanted to cry without tears,
they could only try to release their emotions by deceiving themselves,
holding up the water on their faces and making themselves look like tears. This is a very emotional song.
But chorus, the most sensitive form of art, needs sensibility, just as the earth needs light and water.
When the Westminster Choir performed the Chinese folk song “Youth Dance” in Chinese, the concert was driven to a climax. All the audience could not help but follow the tempo, When the play ended, the applause was long and loud. If you were moved by these songs today, you should believe that “singing” can give people a more holy and pure feeling than playing with a musical instrument. The human voice comes from nature, it should be the same as the sound of flowers, birds and fish, and we should use it to praise nature. The song echoes in space, it is the voice closest to God, as if it were heaven. The hierarchical Chord and the undulating singing are the sounds of nature full of beauty, mystery and power.
Epilogue of Concert
WCC Director of External Affairs, Anne Sears, took the poster back to Princeton.
『 Audiences shared their feelings』
“I am very happy for my children exposing to world-class concert since a kid. It was a real artistic experience.”
“I am also a classical music fan. This clean and pure voice is worth hearing many times.”
“Fantastic and ethereal singing makes people living in a bright and clean paradise.”
“The classic aesthetic, romantic and intoxicated, gentle and solemn singing cleans up the soul.”
“So many different voices are intertwined in an orderly manner, which is very remarkable.”
Kevin strives to hold more such high-quality events in the future and introduce more quality international education resources,
to let our parents and students have more opportunities participating in such events.
And Kaiwen will continue to practice the campus culture that values art and sports.