2012 CONCERT TOUR

Canada

The Heritage Chorale’s concert tour to Montreal and Quebec teemed with the special sights and sounds of those lively cities! Four days in Canada with thrilling concerts each day; yet, we squeezed in sight-seeing, fine dining, and time to socialize with our friends.

Our first Montreal performance in the convent chapel in Laval, just north of Montreal, on Friday night was marked by the incredibly warm reception we received from the audience. Earlier in the day, we toured Montreal’s Biodome where we viewed multiple world ecosystems.

The concert on Saturday night in St. Lambert Parish Church was for a near-capacity audience on a hot steamy night and was graced with additional piano selections by Darryl Hollister, our accompanist. Following the concert, we celebrated Canada Day by watching Montreal’s fireworks display. From the bus, one had the image of Heritage Chorale members in black concert dress, climbing a hill in the moonlight to get to a good vantage point!

On Sunday, we participated in the church service at Church of St. Andrew and St. Paul. Joining with the congregation in singing “O Canada,” with powerful accompaniment from the organ, was a once-in-a-lifetime experience. Again, we were part of Canada’s observance of their national holiday. Then, off to Quebec City, but with a stop at Montmorency Falls.

After touring Quebec City, including the Upper and Lower Towns, Monday evening’s concert was, perhaps, the most heartfelt and emotional concert of the tour. In the gorgeous church, Notre-Dame-de-Jacques-Cartier, with an enthusiastic standing-room-only audience, this was the musical climax of our tour! And to cap the tour, we concluded our evening in the rotating restaurant high above the city leaving us with sweet memories of Quebec and Montreal. We brought the music of Mendelssohn and Lauridson, African American spirituals and America’s show tunes to Canada and received a warm, grateful, and enthusiastic reception from our northern neighbors.