From camp to community: musical and cultural exchange in the 2008 International Choral Ensemble

During the summer of 2008, the Blue Lake Fine Arts Camp International Choral Ensemble, as a community and individuals, represented American youth, Blue Lake, and the United States as cultural ambassadors, touring in Europe and the Midwest. Throughout the rehearsal and performance process, these adolescents, ages thirteen to nineteen, became a tight-knit community, expressing feelings of belonging and group identity. Despite the short rehearsal time, the choir intensely mastered a challenging musical repertoire, presenting their hard work as musical gifts and the content of cultural exchange to host families and communities. The choir’s flexibility to adapt to situations requiring them to participate in regional and national celebrations highlights the strengths of the chorus as physical bodies, capable of producing sounds, creating strong bonds with one another, and integrating itself into communities throughout Europe to reconstitute and re-form itself as a musical body