Spring Break usually means sunshine and swim suits for kids in West Windsor and Plainsboro, but this year, it meant Scottish mist and kilts for 175 students from High School South.##M:[more]## Members of the High School South Symphony Orchestra and Concert Choir, led by Jean Mauro and Janice Chapin, hopped across the Atlantic and toured Scotland, performing in Glasgow, Pitlochry, and Edinburgh.
As a member of the Symphony Orchestra, I was fortunate enough to tag along on the trip. I, like many of the other students, had already traveled internationally with my parents, but for me this trip had one big difference: this time, I was traveling with friends, not family. Traveling with parents is fun, but touring with teenagers was a whole different ball game.
Packing Supplies
With Family: I’m prepared for anything because munchies, Band-Aids, and cameras magically pop out of Mom’s Mary-Poppins-like purse.
In Scotland: My friends and I, true foodies at heart, were perpetually running out of snacks. After exploring a dozen grocery stores, we finally shelled out a few pounds for Pot (the British version of CupoNoodles) and “Feel Good Drinks Co.” lemon soda. Not exactly the grocery list my Mom might have suggested, but it kept us sugared-up and happy.
Using Gadgets
With Family: I ask Dad. It’s an easy, low-risk policy that inevitably gets anything (from the coffee machine to the iron) working.
In Scotland: We’re lucky we didn’t burn, fuse, and flood every gadget that we touched. The moment we stepped in Heathrow airport, we had our first mini-crisis: our cell phones went dead. In the UK, most of our cell phones lost their signals, so we either reprogrammed them on a local circuit, or dealt without our precious flip-phones for eight whole days.
Once we checked into the hotel, we all settled down to charge our gizmos, but we soon realized that the funny circular holes in the walls meant that we would have to use current converters to charge our cameras, hair straighteners, and Gameboys. Even the bathroom was hard to navigate — the alien knobs, levers, and knickknacks in the shower made drawing hot water a Herculean challenge.
Taking Photos
With Family: My parents and I believe in imbibing the local ambience. We figure we don’t need photographs as long as we remember what we see.
In Scotland: As sentimental seniors, we went camera-crazy. Any unsuspecting stranger that passed us was immediately asked to snap a dozen photographs. I believe the photo record can be claimed by my roommate, who snapped over 400 photos on our eight-day trip.
Finding Food
With Family: The hotel usually suggests a nice restaurant where we can find Americanized versions of the local cuisine.
In Scotland: We challenged and convinced each other to try new things. My roommate and I took special pride in sleuthing out local eateries like “The Tasty Fry” — the best fish and chips shop in Pitlochry. And we even wandered into the Elephant House Cafe (where J.K. Rowling first dreamed up Harry Potter). By the end of the trip, nothing could faze us. Fish and chips, duck pate, and the infamous Haggis [boiled sheep’s innards] — we tried it all.
Nighttime Plans
With Family: Grab some dinner, head up to the room, and call it a night.
In Scotland: We pushed our curfew as late as it would go. Each night we clogged the lobby to deal cards, play guitars, and hang out with friends. We learned Scottish dancing, took a “Ghost and Ghouls” tour of Edinburgh, and had a “NonTalent Show” for groups to present silly and outrageous acts. Even after bed-check, my roommate and I would stay up until our eyes watered, eating snacks and getting hooked on British television.
Down to Business
With Family: Traveling with parents is a vacation. No gigs, no assignments, just relaxation.
In Scotland: Working (which in our case meant performing) was the best part of the trip. The symphony orchestra performed twice with the concert choir — once in Glasgow, and once in Edinburgh. In both venues, the stained-glass windows, vaulted ceilings, and rich acoustics were humbling to those of us who thought we had seen it all.
The audience in Glasgow was small, as expected, but our performance in Edinburgh was met with a surprisingly large crowd. In our eight days, we raised over $700 for local charities, and everywhere we went, our repertoire (which was a mix of Scottish and American music) was warmly received.
Many members of our orchestra and choir had traveled prior to this trip, but there were countless reasons that made this particular journey unique. Touring with teenagers was a refreshing experience, and spending time with friends in a foreign country surpassed all our expectations. By wandering in the cities and shopping in the towns, we opened our eyes to a surprisingly foreign culture.
We returned to Newark ladened with souvenirs, but more importantly, we were packed with new facts, memories, and friendships. Hidden somewhere amongst our “Nessie” T-shirts and 50-pence postcards, we had tucked away a new cultural appreciation and a tight group bond. As a clan of 175, we navigated our way through a foreign country, and the experience of traveling with friends made Scotland a truly unforgettable experience.
Concert Review by Susan Nickalls
Edinburgh’s historic Greyfriars Kirk provided an ideal setting for the West Windsor-Plainsboro High School South’s penultimate performance on its Scottish tour. It was in front of the pulpit in this church that the National Covenant of 1638 was signed and perhaps the most famous dog in the world, Greyfriars Bobby, is buried in the adjoining graveyard.
On entering the Kirk, it was quite a sight to see over half of the space taken up by the orchestra and the various choral groups — over 150 young people in total. The main theme of the concert was an eclectic mix of music from both sides of the Atlantic — America and Scotland.
George Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue is a jazzy laid back work and the orchestra, conducted by Jean Mauro, created this smoky atmosphere with ease together with soloist Eric Kang on piano. Kang has a natural, relaxed style and is clearly a talent worth watching and not just at the keyboard. He also plays cello with the orchestra and conducted his choral group, First Edition, in a beautifully judged performance of David Childs’ Ave Verum Corpus.
The concert choir and its director, Janice Chapin, impressed with the sheer range and diversity of their repertoire. The students moved effortlessly from Pergolesi’s Magnificat to acapella versions of well-known songs Shenandoah and Joshua Fit the Battle of Jericho complete with high pitched battle whoops. In between there was also Brahms’ Abenleid and the highlight of this part of the concert, an inspired arrangement by Alice Parker and Robert Shaw of Annie Laurie, a Scottish tune attributed to Lady John Scott. It was wonderful to hear such a well-balanced sound, particularly the inner parts coming through loud and clear.
Apart from the glorious sound created by these young musicians, it was fabulous to see such enjoyment and commitment to the performance. Many people in the audience were amazed to discover that the students were from a mainstream and not a specialist music school. It was clear to see that the young people had invested a lot of hard work outwith the school time-table to achieve such high standards. We look forward to a return visit.
Susan Nickalls is a freelance journalist and music critic for The Scotsman, Scotland’s national daily newspaper.
