Italy 2007
It was with great rejoicing that we as the St. Gregory the Great Parish Choir embarked on our first ever choir pilgrimage to Italy, March 6-15, 2007.
The choir accepted an invitation to be the principal choir singing at the 10:30 AM Latin Mass at the Altar of the Chair in St. Peter's Basilica on Sunday, March 11, 2007. We embraced the opportunity of serving this role of musical leadership at the Vatican with a sense of honor, humility, and great gladness. On the same evening, the choir presented a concert at the church of St. Ignatius in Rome. This performance was a professionally organized concert, enjoyed by an enthusiastic audience of over 500.We also celebrated mass with song at St. Mark's Basilica in Venice and at the Basilica of St. Francis in Assisi. We also had the opportunity to sing for Pope Benedict XVI during his weekly general audience. Our musical selection was a verse of Christ Is There by Patrick Godon, text by Fr. Brian Fischer. We were the only choir to sing for him that day, and he applauded for us! Besides offering us unique liturgical and musical opportunities, this pilgrimage took us to sacred sites of our Catholic faith, including the Sistine Chapel and the basilicas of Christian Rome. We also visited historic and ancient venues of Rome, including the Coliseum and the Roman Forum. Visiting Venice, Ravenna, Florence, and Assisi rounded out a spiritually rewarding and altogether unforgettable experience.
Reflections on the tour
Day 1, March 6, Tuesday:
Depart the USA
Day 2, March 7, Wednesday:
Arrive; Venice region, Padua, Mestre
It seemed that our biggest problems were the first 2 days. We lost one person in London because they told her that her carry-on was too big - but it was the same size as mine and many others' carry-ons. She had to go out and check on the luggage and by the time she did that the plane was boarding and apparently had left on the computer system, even though we were trying to hold it for her. So she had to catch the next flight. Also, one of our older members misplaced her purse. It was later found in the carry-on luggage of another member of our group. She thought that she didn't have her passport or her ticket, but those ended up turning up in a random pocket in her carry-on. Another couple guys went to the wrong gate, but just made it before they closed the gate. So all that held up the plane. We ended up sitting for about 45 minutes before we could take off. When we landed in Milan about 15 peoples' luggage didn't make the connecting flight, so they told us to wait for the next plane which was landing in 15 minutes. 45 minutes later, the next plane came in, and our "lost" person caught that flight, so she ended up meeting up with the group. When all the luggage came through, only 4 peoples' luggage didn't make that flight, but all 4 were delivered to our hotel in Mestre within the next 2 days. The weather was rainy only the second day while we were on the bus. The traffic was bad in a couple spots on the highway to Mestre. That put us in late to Padua and they only allowed 4 people through the doors of the St. Anthony Basilica before they closed it down. Elizabeth tried to argue with them, but we were too late. So it seemed to me that anything that could have gone wrong the first 2 days did. But, on the other hand, it could only get better from there, and it did. The weather was beautiful from then on. People were scared when we had to go through the check point for the bus, thinking that our hotel was in some tall grass; but once we got out of there, it was a fine hotel.
Day 3, March 8, Thursday: AM - Half-day tour of Venice
PM - At leisure
It was a gorgeous day; taking the boat to St. Mark's was a beautiful way to start the tour. Venice felt like a dream world. We were well-received at mass; one of the priests was hoping that we'd sing Bogoroditsye Dyevo and because I didn't want to use any instruments they had, I decided to do all a cappella repertoire. That song was the one I chose for Recessional & the priest stayed to hear us sing that all the way through. Also, just before we started it, another priest announced who we were & where we were from. The choir members were amazed that they were able to sing in such a magnificent space. I was glad that our first singing engagement was there, as it was low key, but a GREAT space for a cappella rep. On the way back to the boat, a guitarist was playing the Schubert Ave Maria and the whole choir circled around him and started singing along. It was a page taken right out of a Dr. Seuss book.
Day 4, March 9, Friday:
Ravenna - Florence
The bus ride was excellent. The tour guides in Ravenna were informative and also very appreciative of us. The woman guide said that she has heard a lot of beautiful choirs come through there, but that we were the best she had heard! What a compliment. The informal singing was a nice way to sing through some of our music and for me to mention some things to them as though it was part concert, part rehearsal. A few people made a point of telling me that they liked Ravenna best out of all the cities we went to because they felt the least like a tourist there. One of the shop owners gave me a free book on the guide's recommendation that I go to her. That was nice. That night in Florence I took out those who wanted to go for gelato. I liked that at this hotel we had our own room in which to eat together.
Day 5, March 10, Saturday:
AM - Academy of Fine Arts; Highlights of Florence
PM - Rome
I spent this morning with Keri, Trent and Anna, checking out the city & gardens. Olga and her son Richard took us out to dinner at a fancy restaurant. The picture we took before the day began turned out great as did the other pics that cameraman took later of us in Rome. That night we had a good late night rehearsal in preparation for the big singing day Sunday. The Hotel Pinewood was my favorite and our room had a balcony! Some tubs had Jacuzzi jets and those were much appreciated at this point of the tour!
Day 6, March 11, Sunday:
AM - Solemn Mass at St. Peter's Basilica
PM - Formal Concert for the city of Rome
The mass went very well and it was so neat for us to drive up towards St. Peter's and then get off the bus in our robes and walk to the church. It was a very good mass and after we finished singing the piece I composed, Rev. Pierre Paul sighed and said "thank you" to me. After mass, James Goetsche thanked me for such an enjoyable morning. He said, "We know how much work that takes. I also thank you for bringing such a diverse and varied repertoire. We don't normally hear music like this sung by visiting choirs. We can learn a few things from the music that you chose." I was in shell-shock after those comments and knew I had to go and write them down. I really felt like we left a lasting impression on both Rev. P. Paul and James Goetsche. They were smiling for much of the mass and the choir was in top form because of our rehearsal the night before. Elizabeth worked out lunch for those that wanted it at the hotel for a small price. I took a nap that afternoon & then woke up and got ready for the concert. The concert was also well-received - the programs looked great and so did the posters. The seats were filled and at the very end the audience gave us a standing ovation. The choir was again pleasantly surprised to be singing in such a beautiful church with such reverberant acoustics. I was pleased with the concert and also the professional pictures taken during and after. Our organist Brett got to try out the organ that afternoon to get acquainted with the instrument. The rehearsal before the concert was just enough time as we arrived late, because of the big group situation, and we got to at least rehearse spots in all the pieces. This was a very good day, and one I will never forget.
Day 7, March 12, Monday:
AM - Vatican Museums; Sistine Chapel; St. Peter's Basilica
PM - At leisure
I started out on the tour with Maria Gratia, but ended up going off on my own as she started to bother me & the headsets weren't working. She was flustered because the head sets weren't working, but at times she was actually yelling at the group telling them to look at the tapestries! She lost me there & turned me off to what she was saying. The rest of the day was great. A group of us went all over the city seeing the major sites.
Day 8, March 13, Tuesday:
Full-day excursion to Assisi, visiting the sites of St. Francis
After this day trip, a few of those that told me they liked Ravenna the best said that they now liked Assisi the best and that they'd like to personally come back and spend a few days here. The mass here was also very good and the priest mentioned our group about 4 times during the mass and had a huge smile the whole time. He even included us in a petition. The tour guides in Assisi were very good.
Day 9, March 14, Wednesday:
AM - Papal Audience
PM - Tour of Ancient Rome, farewell dinner at a Roman restaurant
We were the only choir that sang that day at the audience and the pope clapped for us! Right after we warmed up a group of Italian school kids turned around and wanted us to sing some more. I spoke Italian with them and a few of us gave them some US dollars in exchange for Euros. They wanted us to sing more and more so we ended up singing a handful of songs at various times. They also sang a few simple songs for us. The outside audience was much better than the inside one. This was a very good experience. The English cardinal that was reading churches gave us a scare when it seemed that they were going in alphabetical order and then he skipped over us. Then a few seconds later he announced us and we jumped up and sang out! That was a rush but we had a loud tuner to give us a starting pitch. The choir was very tired for the tour of ancient Rome, but they had a great time regardless. Keri and I went inside the Coliseum and met up with the group later. The Farewell dinner was great. Many people thought it would be at a touristy place, but they were very happily surprised to find that it was a great restaurant with great music. The drive there and back had great sights. I gave a speech at the restaurant and then we headed back reluctantly.
Day 10, March 15, Thursday:
Return to the USA
One girl thought that she had lost her leather coat on the first leg of the trip, but it somehow magically appeared in her bin above her as we were getting ready to get off the plane at O'Hare. It was a bit of a scurry both times at Heathrow because we had to take 2 buses each time to get to the connecting flight, but I tried to act as tour leader at those times and go ahead of people and reassure them once they got to the gate.
I'm glad we did this. I had a few people tell me that it was the best trip they had ever been on. We had a great group and nothing major went wrong. Overall, there was a perfect balance of singing, sight-seeing, time on the bus, walking. Taking such a big group was tough, as everything got moved back due to the time it takes to move a group of 65! Our tour manager Elizabeth was GREAT. She said that in her 10 years of doing this we are the best choir she's heard. The trip for me was a major success.
The choir accepted an invitation to be the principal choir singing at the 10:30 AM Latin Mass at the Altar of the Chair in St. Peter's Basilica on Sunday, March 11, 2007. We embraced the opportunity of serving this role of musical leadership at the Vatican with a sense of honor, humility, and great gladness. On the same evening, the choir presented a concert at the church of St. Ignatius in Rome. This performance was a professionally organized concert, enjoyed by an enthusiastic audience of over 500.We also celebrated mass with song at St. Mark's Basilica in Venice and at the Basilica of St. Francis in Assisi. We also had the opportunity to sing for Pope Benedict XVI during his weekly general audience. Our musical selection was a verse of Christ Is There by Patrick Godon, text by Fr. Brian Fischer. We were the only choir to sing for him that day, and he applauded for us! Besides offering us unique liturgical and musical opportunities, this pilgrimage took us to sacred sites of our Catholic faith, including the Sistine Chapel and the basilicas of Christian Rome. We also visited historic and ancient venues of Rome, including the Coliseum and the Roman Forum. Visiting Venice, Ravenna, Florence, and Assisi rounded out a spiritually rewarding and altogether unforgettable experience.
Reflections on the tour
Day 1, March 6, Tuesday:
Depart the USA
Day 2, March 7, Wednesday:
Arrive; Venice region, Padua, Mestre
It seemed that our biggest problems were the first 2 days. We lost one person in London because they told her that her carry-on was too big - but it was the same size as mine and many others' carry-ons. She had to go out and check on the luggage and by the time she did that the plane was boarding and apparently had left on the computer system, even though we were trying to hold it for her. So she had to catch the next flight. Also, one of our older members misplaced her purse. It was later found in the carry-on luggage of another member of our group. She thought that she didn't have her passport or her ticket, but those ended up turning up in a random pocket in her carry-on. Another couple guys went to the wrong gate, but just made it before they closed the gate. So all that held up the plane. We ended up sitting for about 45 minutes before we could take off. When we landed in Milan about 15 peoples' luggage didn't make the connecting flight, so they told us to wait for the next plane which was landing in 15 minutes. 45 minutes later, the next plane came in, and our "lost" person caught that flight, so she ended up meeting up with the group. When all the luggage came through, only 4 peoples' luggage didn't make that flight, but all 4 were delivered to our hotel in Mestre within the next 2 days. The weather was rainy only the second day while we were on the bus. The traffic was bad in a couple spots on the highway to Mestre. That put us in late to Padua and they only allowed 4 people through the doors of the St. Anthony Basilica before they closed it down. Elizabeth tried to argue with them, but we were too late. So it seemed to me that anything that could have gone wrong the first 2 days did. But, on the other hand, it could only get better from there, and it did. The weather was beautiful from then on. People were scared when we had to go through the check point for the bus, thinking that our hotel was in some tall grass; but once we got out of there, it was a fine hotel.
Day 3, March 8, Thursday: AM - Half-day tour of Venice
PM - At leisure
It was a gorgeous day; taking the boat to St. Mark's was a beautiful way to start the tour. Venice felt like a dream world. We were well-received at mass; one of the priests was hoping that we'd sing Bogoroditsye Dyevo and because I didn't want to use any instruments they had, I decided to do all a cappella repertoire. That song was the one I chose for Recessional & the priest stayed to hear us sing that all the way through. Also, just before we started it, another priest announced who we were & where we were from. The choir members were amazed that they were able to sing in such a magnificent space. I was glad that our first singing engagement was there, as it was low key, but a GREAT space for a cappella rep. On the way back to the boat, a guitarist was playing the Schubert Ave Maria and the whole choir circled around him and started singing along. It was a page taken right out of a Dr. Seuss book.
Day 4, March 9, Friday:
Ravenna - Florence
The bus ride was excellent. The tour guides in Ravenna were informative and also very appreciative of us. The woman guide said that she has heard a lot of beautiful choirs come through there, but that we were the best she had heard! What a compliment. The informal singing was a nice way to sing through some of our music and for me to mention some things to them as though it was part concert, part rehearsal. A few people made a point of telling me that they liked Ravenna best out of all the cities we went to because they felt the least like a tourist there. One of the shop owners gave me a free book on the guide's recommendation that I go to her. That was nice. That night in Florence I took out those who wanted to go for gelato. I liked that at this hotel we had our own room in which to eat together.
Day 5, March 10, Saturday:
AM - Academy of Fine Arts; Highlights of Florence
PM - Rome
I spent this morning with Keri, Trent and Anna, checking out the city & gardens. Olga and her son Richard took us out to dinner at a fancy restaurant. The picture we took before the day began turned out great as did the other pics that cameraman took later of us in Rome. That night we had a good late night rehearsal in preparation for the big singing day Sunday. The Hotel Pinewood was my favorite and our room had a balcony! Some tubs had Jacuzzi jets and those were much appreciated at this point of the tour!
Day 6, March 11, Sunday:
AM - Solemn Mass at St. Peter's Basilica
PM - Formal Concert for the city of Rome
The mass went very well and it was so neat for us to drive up towards St. Peter's and then get off the bus in our robes and walk to the church. It was a very good mass and after we finished singing the piece I composed, Rev. Pierre Paul sighed and said "thank you" to me. After mass, James Goetsche thanked me for such an enjoyable morning. He said, "We know how much work that takes. I also thank you for bringing such a diverse and varied repertoire. We don't normally hear music like this sung by visiting choirs. We can learn a few things from the music that you chose." I was in shell-shock after those comments and knew I had to go and write them down. I really felt like we left a lasting impression on both Rev. P. Paul and James Goetsche. They were smiling for much of the mass and the choir was in top form because of our rehearsal the night before. Elizabeth worked out lunch for those that wanted it at the hotel for a small price. I took a nap that afternoon & then woke up and got ready for the concert. The concert was also well-received - the programs looked great and so did the posters. The seats were filled and at the very end the audience gave us a standing ovation. The choir was again pleasantly surprised to be singing in such a beautiful church with such reverberant acoustics. I was pleased with the concert and also the professional pictures taken during and after. Our organist Brett got to try out the organ that afternoon to get acquainted with the instrument. The rehearsal before the concert was just enough time as we arrived late, because of the big group situation, and we got to at least rehearse spots in all the pieces. This was a very good day, and one I will never forget.
Day 7, March 12, Monday:
AM - Vatican Museums; Sistine Chapel; St. Peter's Basilica
PM - At leisure
I started out on the tour with Maria Gratia, but ended up going off on my own as she started to bother me & the headsets weren't working. She was flustered because the head sets weren't working, but at times she was actually yelling at the group telling them to look at the tapestries! She lost me there & turned me off to what she was saying. The rest of the day was great. A group of us went all over the city seeing the major sites.
Day 8, March 13, Tuesday:
Full-day excursion to Assisi, visiting the sites of St. Francis
After this day trip, a few of those that told me they liked Ravenna the best said that they now liked Assisi the best and that they'd like to personally come back and spend a few days here. The mass here was also very good and the priest mentioned our group about 4 times during the mass and had a huge smile the whole time. He even included us in a petition. The tour guides in Assisi were very good.
Day 9, March 14, Wednesday:
AM - Papal Audience
PM - Tour of Ancient Rome, farewell dinner at a Roman restaurant
We were the only choir that sang that day at the audience and the pope clapped for us! Right after we warmed up a group of Italian school kids turned around and wanted us to sing some more. I spoke Italian with them and a few of us gave them some US dollars in exchange for Euros. They wanted us to sing more and more so we ended up singing a handful of songs at various times. They also sang a few simple songs for us. The outside audience was much better than the inside one. This was a very good experience. The English cardinal that was reading churches gave us a scare when it seemed that they were going in alphabetical order and then he skipped over us. Then a few seconds later he announced us and we jumped up and sang out! That was a rush but we had a loud tuner to give us a starting pitch. The choir was very tired for the tour of ancient Rome, but they had a great time regardless. Keri and I went inside the Coliseum and met up with the group later. The Farewell dinner was great. Many people thought it would be at a touristy place, but they were very happily surprised to find that it was a great restaurant with great music. The drive there and back had great sights. I gave a speech at the restaurant and then we headed back reluctantly.
Day 10, March 15, Thursday:
Return to the USA
One girl thought that she had lost her leather coat on the first leg of the trip, but it somehow magically appeared in her bin above her as we were getting ready to get off the plane at O'Hare. It was a bit of a scurry both times at Heathrow because we had to take 2 buses each time to get to the connecting flight, but I tried to act as tour leader at those times and go ahead of people and reassure them once they got to the gate.
I'm glad we did this. I had a few people tell me that it was the best trip they had ever been on. We had a great group and nothing major went wrong. Overall, there was a perfect balance of singing, sight-seeing, time on the bus, walking. Taking such a big group was tough, as everything got moved back due to the time it takes to move a group of 65! Our tour manager Elizabeth was GREAT. She said that in her 10 years of doing this we are the best choir she's heard. The trip for me was a major success.
Repertoire
A Gaelic Blessing ~ John Rutter
If Ye Love Me ~ Thomas Tallis
Call To Remembrance ~ Richard Farrant
Ave Verum Corpus ~ William Byrd
Nun Danket Alle Gott ~ J. S. Bach
Cantique de Jean Racine, Op. 11 ~ Gabriel Faure
Bogoroditsye Dyevo ~ Sergei Rachmaninoff
Precious Lord ~ Thomas Dorsey, arranged by Jack Schrader
What Wondrous Love ~ arranged by Ed Nowak
Daniel, Daniel, Servant of the Lord ~ arranged by Undine S. Moore
Wash Me Throughly ~ Samuel Sebastian Wesley
Christ Is There ~ Patrick Godon
Like as the Hart Desireth the Waterbrooks ~ Herbert Howells
The Lord Bless You and Keep You ~ John Rutter
If Ye Love Me ~ Thomas Tallis
Call To Remembrance ~ Richard Farrant
Ave Verum Corpus ~ William Byrd
Nun Danket Alle Gott ~ J. S. Bach
Cantique de Jean Racine, Op. 11 ~ Gabriel Faure
Bogoroditsye Dyevo ~ Sergei Rachmaninoff
Precious Lord ~ Thomas Dorsey, arranged by Jack Schrader
What Wondrous Love ~ arranged by Ed Nowak
Daniel, Daniel, Servant of the Lord ~ arranged by Undine S. Moore
Wash Me Throughly ~ Samuel Sebastian Wesley
Christ Is There ~ Patrick Godon
Like as the Hart Desireth the Waterbrooks ~ Herbert Howells
The Lord Bless You and Keep You ~ John Rutter
Pilgrims
Patrick Godon, Director of Music
Soprano
Kristine Acuna
Marsha Cote
Krista Damico
Keri Godon
Debra Harvey
Dona Hernandez
Sharon Howerton
Maria Leonor Ivan
Amy Laures
Barbara S. Lea
Tina McDonald
Michaella Rathle
Rogeria Santiago
Alto
Ida Christensen
Mary Ann Doyle
Nora Estrada
Cecilia Hui
Susan Licciardi
Judy Nocek
Ellen Peirce
Gina Prokopeak
Olga Rivas
Anna Sible
Tenor
Dan Boyle
Luis Galvez
Dan Hess
David Lux
Ramon del Rosario
Aaron Vandermeer
Bass
Roger Dore
Chuck Fiori
Christopher Grant
Thomas Hall
Larry Hernandez
Michael O'Connell
Tony Retkowski
Ed Rolfsen
Vic Tibudan
Organ
Brett Rowe
Friends of the Choir
Ann Baran
Consuelo Buenvenida
Winston Buenvenida
Tomas Buenvenida, Jr.
Emma del Rosario
Aida Davila
Carmen Delgado
Kathleen Godon
Maurice Godon
Teresa Hsu
Gabriel Wai Kit Hui
Margaret Hui
Yeeying Lee Hui
Donna Hussain
James Jamieson
Tom Laures
Martha Lux
Marilyn Moore
Jerome Nocek
Michael Prokopeak
Marites Rienton
Amelia Santa Brigida
Trent Sible
Leticia Tibudan
Lydia Yee
Back to top
Soprano
Kristine Acuna
Marsha Cote
Krista Damico
Keri Godon
Debra Harvey
Dona Hernandez
Sharon Howerton
Maria Leonor Ivan
Amy Laures
Barbara S. Lea
Tina McDonald
Michaella Rathle
Rogeria Santiago
Alto
Ida Christensen
Mary Ann Doyle
Nora Estrada
Cecilia Hui
Susan Licciardi
Judy Nocek
Ellen Peirce
Gina Prokopeak
Olga Rivas
Anna Sible
Tenor
Dan Boyle
Luis Galvez
Dan Hess
David Lux
Ramon del Rosario
Aaron Vandermeer
Bass
Roger Dore
Chuck Fiori
Christopher Grant
Thomas Hall
Larry Hernandez
Michael O'Connell
Tony Retkowski
Ed Rolfsen
Vic Tibudan
Organ
Brett Rowe
Friends of the Choir
Ann Baran
Consuelo Buenvenida
Winston Buenvenida
Tomas Buenvenida, Jr.
Emma del Rosario
Aida Davila
Carmen Delgado
Kathleen Godon
Maurice Godon
Teresa Hsu
Gabriel Wai Kit Hui
Margaret Hui
Yeeying Lee Hui
Donna Hussain
James Jamieson
Tom Laures
Martha Lux
Marilyn Moore
Jerome Nocek
Michael Prokopeak
Marites Rienton
Amelia Santa Brigida
Trent Sible
Leticia Tibudan
Lydia Yee
Back to top