SCS Touring Choir bids farewell to 2009 Sicily and Malta

The SCS Touring Choir departed Malta on July 6 after touring Sicily & Malta with Incantato for twelve days. Six performances in prime venues, two exchanges, 7000 year old temples, ancient Greek theatres, amazing cathedrals, interesting museums... and last not least wonderful food and fun at the beaches, the group of 52 from Akron, Ohio and the Summit Choral Society surely kept busy. Incantato Tour Manager Stefania bid farewell to the group at the airport on Monday morning and all of us with them a safe return home.

SCS Touring Choir concludes Incantato Performance Tour as featured guest choir for High Mass at St. John's Co-Cathedral

Malta's most prestigious church, St. john's Co-Cathedral in the capital city of Valetta, was the perfect setting for the finale performance of the 2009 SCS Incantato Tour to Sicily and Malta. The singers from Akron, Ohio were the featured guest choir for High Mass on Saturday, July 4 at 6 pm and they 43 students not only sang to a full house, but also moved Monsignor Mifsud, the rector of the cathedral, with their presentation. "I would like to thank you for singing here today and as a musician myself, I appreciate your presentation probably even more so than the others", the Priest said after the mass concluded and even allowed an encore: The spiritual "Go Where I Send Thee!" can be seen and listened to in this recording.

SCS Touring Choir Sings Evening Mass at St. John's Co-Cathedral on July 4 at 6 pm

What a better way to celebrate the 4th of July when traveling abroad than performing in the most prestigious venue of the country. The SCS Touring Choir presents its sixth and finale performance of their 2009 Incantato Tour to Siclíly and Malta at 6 pm in Valetta.

St John’s Co-Cathedral is a gem of Baroque art and architecture. It was built as the temple of the Knights of St. John. The severe exterior of the Cathedral, built immediately after the ending of the Great Siege of 1565, is reminiscent of a military fort The Grand Masters and several knights donated gifts of high artistic value and made enormous contributions to enrich it with only the best works of art. This church is till this very day an important shrine and a sacred place of worship. The Church was designed by the Maltese military architect Glormu Cassar who designed several of the more prominent buildings in Valletta.

The painting depicting The Beheading of Saint John the Baptist (1608) by Caravaggio (1571-1610) is the most famous work in the church. Considered one of Caravaggio's masterpieces and the only painting signed by the painter, the canvas is displayed in the Oratory for which it was painted. Restored in the late 1990's in Florence, this painting is one of Caravaggio's most impressive uses of the chiaroscuro style for which he is most famous with a circle of light illuminating the scene of St John's beheading at the request of Salome. The oratory also houses Caravaggio's St Jerome III (1607–1608).

"Compliments for a wonderful event" - Joined Benefit Concert by SCS Touring Choir and Schola Cantorum Jubilate in Gozo a huge success for all

The SCS Touring Choir explored the island of Gozo as part of their 2009 Incantato Performance Tour to the islands of Sicily and Malta on July 3. The day full of educational yet fun sightseeing concluded with a highlight performance in the National Shrine of Ta' Pinu to a large and appreciative audience.
Incantato Tours presented the concert in collaboration with the Gozitan Choir Schola Cantorum Jubiltae. Soprano Ms. Marouska Attard, the director of Schola, presented two soli accompanied by SCS pianist Mrs. Kathy Reichenberger and guest conducted "Jesu Dulcis Memoria" by Maltese composer Paul Portelli who was in the audience. Despite only a short preparation time, the American singers enchanted the audience by performing this Maltese work. "It is a very special moment for me", composer Portelli said.
For 17 of the 43 young women and men, this was also the last concert with the SCS Touring Choir as the have graduated high school and are off to college. The encore spiritual thus moved several of the singers to tears.
Father Gerard of Ta Pinu thanked both choirs and Incantato Tours for "making this excellent concert possible" He continue by saying: "Compliments for a wonderful event" and expressed the hope that he can soon host a fine choir from the US in his church again.

For videos from this and other Incantato Performance Tour concert, please visit http://www.youtube.com/incantatotours

SCS Touring Choir warmly welcomed by Maltese audience at St. Helen's Church - "You sound angelic"

The SCS Touring Choir was warmly welcomed by the Maltese audience in the magnificent church of St. Helen's in Birkirkara. Singers and guests alike instantly fell in love with the beautifully decorated venue and their hosts. The singers from Akron, Ohio were the featured guest choir for High Mass and a benefit concert in aid of Richmond Foundation Malta. Father Charles asked two of the singers, Elisabeth Berkovitz and Patrick Tregoning to introduce their choir to the congregation. "It is our honor to welcome you here and we wish you all the best for your journeys", he said and complimented the Summit Choral Society. The singers truly enjoyed singing for the appreciative and music loving Maltese although they were a bit tired from the journey to Malta from Sicily via ferry boat that very morning followed by fun times at the beach of the Paradise Bay Hotel where the group is staying. "You sound angelic", added a representative from the Richmond Foundation. The NGO was thankful for the choir's help to raise awareness for their cause: "A mentally healthy community".

The next formal concert is on July 3 at 7:30 pm at Ta' Pinu Basilica in Gozo.

SCS Touring Choir Performance at St. Helen in Birkirkara on July 1

The SCS Touring Choir performs on Wednesday, July 1, at 6:30 pm at St. Helen's Church in Birkirkara - one of the oldest and most prestigious churches on the island.
St. Helen is also the titular saint of the parish. The church became a Collegiate church in 1630 and a Minor Basilica on in the 20th century.
Birkirkara is the largest population center on the Islands and has been so since the Middle Ages. Most of present-day Birkirkara is modern, though the town retains a traditional core characterized by alleyways, narrow streets and houses typical of small villages. The larger town houses tend to be used as headquarters for band clubs or political parties. A tiny garden separates the town's older area from the new quarters. Here you can see one of the old railway stations on the commuter line that ran from Rabat to Valletta. Apart from the churches, the oldest buildings in the town are the windmills. One is a private residence, the other, at the heart of the town, is an art gallery. Known locally as `Ta' Ganu' it hosts exhibitions by local and foreign artists.
The SCS Touring Choir is the featured guest choir for High Mass and will also present a short concert afterwards. Donations collected during the performances will benefit the Richmond Foundation Malta.

"Siete veramente bravi!" - third SCS Touring Choir Sicily concert enchants audience

What better place to present the third and final concert in Italian soil for the SCS Touring Choir then the Duomo di San Giorgio in Modica: On June 30, the 43 singers under the direction of Mrs. Arlene Jacobs from Akron, Ohio enchanted the audience at the main cathedral of the UNESCO World Heritage town during their 2009 Incantato Tour of Sicily and Malta. "Siete veramente bravi", the locals told the choir ("you are truly very good") and the asked for "Bis, Bis, Bis" (Encore, Encore, Encore) long before the concert was over. Again, the Italian folk songs were audience favorites and several of the older people heartily sang along.
The group is off to Malta where they sing at on July 1 at 6:30 pm at Santa Helen's Church in Birkirkara.

Impressions from the SCS Touring Choir Concert in Noto

SCS Touring Choir Concert at San Carlo al Corso in Noto on June 29 at 8:30 pm

It's another concert day for Summit in Sicily! On June 29 at 8:30 PM, the SCS Touring Choir under the direction of Mrs Arlene Jacobs is presenting the second formal concert of their 2009 Incantato Performance at the Church of San Carlo al Corso. The Church of San Carlo al Corso was dedicated to San Carlo Borromeo - the church of the convent of the Jesuits of Noto. The construction of the building began in 1730, the church is designed a longitudinal plan with three naves covered by a barrel-vaulted and divided by half.

First SCS Concert on 2009 Incantato Performance Tour a huge success - full house and great sound

Just a short post to let you know that the first SCS Touring Choir Concert on the 2009 Incantato Performance Tour to Sicily & Malta was a huge success. The singers had a full house at the beautiful church of Santa Cantarina in Taormina - the audience actually was even listening from outside as all seats were long taken. Some people even insisted on sitting down during rehearsal and stayed until the very end. Monsignore (Father) Cesare thanked the group from Akron, Ohio for their inspiring performance and joined in the minute-long applause from the mostly Sicilian audience. Favorites were Younger's Kyrie Eleison, Shiru, Dirait-on, Shiru and the encore spiritual. The audience cheered the choir on as they sang two Italian folk songs. More pictures and videos will follow. It surely was "wunderbar" and guess what I discovered on my way home. Buena notte, good-night from Italy --- Sandra

For a video of "La Barchetta", visit www.youtube.com/incantatotours

Impressions from the SCS Touring Choir Concert in Taormina

Warm-up in Malta - SCS Touring Choir sings Santa Lucia

SCS Touring Choir Performance Tour 2009 - Performance Overview

Dear SCS Touring Choir singers, here is an overview of your confirmed performance appointments...enjoy!

June 28th at 8:00 PM Concert at Santa Caterina Duomo, Taormina

June 29th at 8:30 PM Concert at Chiesa di San Carlo al Corso, Noto

June 30th at 7:30 PM Concert at Duomo San Giorgio, Modica

July 1st at 6:30 PM SCS Touring Choir sings High Mass and presents a Benefit Concert at St. Helen Church, Birkirkara

July 3rd at 7:30 PM Concert at Ta' Pinu Basilica, Gozo

July 4 at 6:00 PM SCS Touring Choir sings High Mass at St. John’s Co- Cathedral, Valetta

The SCS Touring Choir 2009 Incantato Poster

About the SCS Touring Choir

The Summit Children’s Touring Choir, under the direction of Mrs. Arlene Jacobs is touring Malta and Sicily this summer, June 25th – July 6th 2009. They serve as performance ambassadors for the whole of the Summit Choral Society in Akron, Ohio.

In recent years they have been involved in performances of such large scale works as Brahms' Liebeslieder Waltzes, Mendelssohn's Elijah, Monteverdi's 1610 Vespers, Verdi’s Quattro Pezzi Sacri and William Mathias' Jonah. They have also been prominently featured in the Summit Choral Society’s three major commissioned works one of which was premiered in Beijing, China in collaboration with the China Children’s Choir of Beijing and the Indianapolis Children’s Choir.

During the past decade, the SCS Touring Choir has been featured in state, regional and national choral conferences. They have appeared as part of international music festivals in England, Hawaii, China and Italy and in June of 2007 experienced their first independent international tour giving concerts to capacity crowds in the German cities of Speyer and Chemnitz; Czech Republic cities of Chulmec and Prague; and in Vienna, Austria singing High Mass at the famous Stefansdom as well as a benefit concert in St. Anna Kirche – proceeds of which went to the children’s cancer unit of Vienna’s St. Anna Hospital. This coming summer the SCC Touring choir will embark on their second independent international tour to Malta and Sicily in the heart of the Mediterranean.