In Dinkelsbuhl, Bavaria, Germany, students perform John Edmondson's “Little Theatre of Lafayette” under the direction of Lowell Middle School band director Kate Bredwell.
MULTIPLE DISTRICT — A musical concert in 95-degree heat in Fontainebleau, France, was one of the memorable experiences for about 200 Michigan students during a two-week European tour this summer.
The sweat-drenched concert band was performing in an area known for its rich history, with ties to Louis IX, Napoleon Bonaparte and Marie Antoinette, on its way to concerts in Switzerland, Austria and Germany following a performance in a London park.
The troupe of traveling musicians, including students from Lowell, Grandville and Caledonia high schools, was touring with Michigan Musicians Abroad, an Indianapolis-based tour operator.
The group included approximately 140 musicians, 60 choristers, and 32 staff and chaperones. Students were nominated as participants by staff from their respective schools and prepared before the trip with a three-day rehearsal camp at Grand Valley State University.
From left, 2024 graduates Kai Bredwell and Maya Kemp, 2023 graduate Makayla Sokol and third-year student Margaret Rodriguez dress up for their European performance (Courtesy)
Maya Kemp, who graduated from Lowell High School in May, said that in Europe, musicians performed more than 12 songs at each concert.
“The stakes were definitely raised a little bit because there were so many pieces,” Maya says. “At Lowell, we tend to focus on two or three pieces at a time for months, but here we had 14 in the space of a week.”
In between concerts and charter bus trips, they toured medieval castles, crossed the English Channel by ferry, climbed to the top of the Eiffel Tower, soaked up the pre-Olympic hustle and bustle, explored bustling cities and breathed the cool mountain air of the famous Alps high in the clouds.
Michigan students will perform “Wolverine Summer,” written by Randall Standridge, in Fontainebleau, France, under the direction of Grandville High School Associate Band Director Ross Huber.
“I've always been interested in going to Europe, and I get to play the flute, so I was really excited,” said third-year flutist Margaret Rodriguez. “It was really fun, although I did get a bit nervous at times because I didn't know anyone in the audience.”
Maya Kemp, who plays clarinet, said the trip was an opportunity she had to seize.
“It's one thing to go somewhere, but another to perform in front of people. I couldn't turn it down because I'll never be able to do it again.”
The concert featured mostly Americana-style tunes, said Lowell Middle School band director Kate Bredwell, who accompanied the students with her husband, Brian Bredwell. Both are members of the Grand Rapids Symphony Orchestra.
She said European audiences enjoyed hearing songs from U.S. groups, but the musicians also played other songs related to the regions they visited.
Maja has noticed the effect their music has on people who listen to them: “The audience has a lot of fun,” she says. “In Austria, there were a lot of old people dancing to Chicago.”
“The stakes were definitely raised a little bit because there were so many pieces. In Lowell, we tend to focus on two or three pieces at a time for a few months, but here we had 14 in the space of a week.”
— Maya Kemp, Lowell High School musician
Added Makayla Sokol, who will graduate in 2023 and now attends Western Michigan University, where she plays piccolo in the marching band: “The people in Switzerland really loved our music, too. I saw so many people looking at the choir and I thought, 'I love these people.'”
“The great thing about music to me is that it brings people from all walks of life together,” says Kate Bredwell, “and it's wonderful to see a group quickly bond through playing and being musicians and then come together and put on a great performance.”
Traveling enriches the experience, she says. “It shows students how much there is outside of their town and their school. It's a really great perspective kids can get, and they can get that through music. We can connect with people from other countries through music.”
For more information on Lowell:
• The camp's mission is to build an arts community.
• Campers will master lessons and develop their gardening knowledge
