NASHVILLE, Tenn. – The Children’s Cello Choir of Nashville at the Blair School of Music will tour Germany this month, performing two concerts at Magdeburg, sister city of Nashville.
"Traveling with cellos complicates matters quite a bit," said Anne Hall Williams, director of the cello choir. "Most of them–their cello cases are bigger than they are."
The 12 members of the cello choir, along with 13 others, leave Friday from Atlanta and return on June 19. The Atlanta airport offers a direct flight to Frankfurt, minimizing the possibility of cellos being damaged in transit.
Groundwork for the visit was laid last year during a visit to Magdeburg by Nashville attorney Douglas Berry, president of Sister Cities of Nashville and father of cello choir member Zan Berry. Shortly after the visit, Williams received an invitation for a cello choir performance from Helmut Keller, director of The Telemann Conservatory in Magdeburg. Performances at churches in Eisenach and Naumberg have since been added to the itinerary.
"Our first performance will be in St. George’s Church in Eisenach, the church where Bach was baptized," Williams said. "Then we’re hoping to play at St. Thomas Church in Leipzig, where Bach worked for 27 years. We haven’t gotten clearance for that yet, but we may just set up outside on the steps and do it anyway!"
The repertoire for the Germany concerts will include Bach, Telemann, Vivaldi, Lennon-McCartney and Richard Lane. The last composer, who is still active, provided his "Elegy for 12 Cellos." The piece is a favorite of Williams; it was written for a group of cellists that included her while Lane was visiting composer in 1961 at Henry Clay High School in Lexington, Ky.
The Children’s Cello Choir of Nashville at the Blair School of Music consists of 12 musicians who range in age from 11 to 15. Most of them began Suzuki cello lessons under Williams before kindergarten. The group has been playing together for nearly seven years, the past two as the cello choir.
"This has been such a dream group," Williams said. "I’ve been teaching close to 40 years and I’ve been at Blair for 18, and this is the first time I’ve ever been able to cultivate a group on such a high level as these 12 kids.
"They’ve just all come together as this nucleus of exceptional cellists."
Cello choir member Meredith Wholley, 12, said she is looking forward to staying with a host family during part of the trip. "It will be interesting to see how they live," she said. Abby Schoenfeld, 11, said she planned to "eat lots of bratwurst."
"A lot of professional musicians don’t even get to go overseas to perform," Schoenfeld said, "and we’re going all the way to Germany."
The Suzuki method of teaching music is based on the way children learn language.
"They begin at a very early age, because that’s when their ear is at its highest level to assimilate sounds," Williams said. "They progress in tiny, tiny increments. Just learning to sit still in a chair is one of the first tasks."
Members of the cello choir raised money for the trip with a fundraising letter sent to friends and family. Blair School of Music and other benefactors in the community also contributed.
"The Suzuki program at the Blair School has long been one of our finest programs," said Mark Wait, dean of the Blair School of Music. "I’m thrilled that this excellent program and these wonderful students are being recognized in this exciting tour to Germany, and I am deeply grateful to all the people who have helped make this trip possible.
"These students will be great ambassadors for Vanderbilt."
The members of The Children’s Cello Choir of Nashville at the Blair School of Music are Zan Berry, Austin Hoke, Alvin Kim, Michael Mansouri, Sam Quiggins, Jack Quiggins, Abby Schoenfeld, Griffin Shoemaker, Pierce Trey, Josh Vann, Meredith Wholley and Rachel Yu. The accompanist is Celeste Halbrook Tuten.
Media contact: Jim Patterson, (615) 322-NEWS
jim.patterson@vanderbilt.edu