The Indiana Wesleyan University Chorale visited California over spring break where they performed and experienced music in a new way.
The IWU Chorale, the top ensemble for vocalists in the Division of Music and Theatre, includes students of different ages and majors. The group frequently travels locally and nationally to learn and spread the love of Christ simultaneously.
“[The Chorale] is also an institutional representative functioning much like a large ministry team,” Davy Chinn, the director of the Chorale, said. “So we travel around every year to local churches and local schools leading worship on Sunday mornings, occasionally giving concerts in the evenings, sometimes workshopping at local high schools, representing the institution in a sort of performative brand ambassador, kind of way.”
The Chorale stuck to a full itinerary while in California. They performed at various venues and visited other places, including the University of Southern California and Pepperdine University, to experience and learn more about music.
In addition to their new musical experiences, the students also experienced new things related to their faith. Jadyn Mucher, a senior and a community formation officer for the Chorale, said that visiting the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels and participating in a Catholic Mass particularly impacted her because she’d never been to a Catholic Mass before, and the Chorale also had the privilege of singing some songs at the end in the beautiful cathedral.
The trip provided the Chorale with many new learning experiences. It also gave the students an opportunity to bond closer in their relationships with one another. Myah Miller, a freshman in the Chorale, said getting to know and grow closer to other people throughout the course of the 10 day tour stood out to her most of all.
In the past, the Chorale has taken many tours to different places and for different reasons, but the trip to California offered unique benefits. Chinn said that the appreciation for classical music in Southern California significantly exceeds that of Indiana, which played a role in the unique experiences of the trip including a performance by the Los Angeles Philharmonic at Walt Disney Concert Hall.
“You know, going to see a mall or a concert on a Thursday night, 8 p.m. and a few thousand-seat auditorium sold out? You don’t get that in Grant County, Indiana,” Chinn said.
The students typically contribute some of their own funds and help fundraise to support these trips, but the majority of the funding comes from IWU.
“We are very, very, very blessed that the University supports our endeavor in traveling,” Chinn said. “We’re building connections with alumni and hopefully future students and potential donors.”
Video by Sydney Leyerle
