Whirlwind tour takes Southeast Missouri Symphony Orchestra to Beijing, Great Wall of China

Weather was a major factor determining whether the Southeast Missouri Symphony Orchestra would play its only outdoor concert on the Great Wall of China during their recent tour of the country.

There was no rain and they planned for sun, but members did not anticipate the wind that would hamper them during their performance.

"We were using Scotch tape and clothespins to keep the music on the stand," said Rhett Hendrickson, who has been playing viola with the orchestra for 15 years.

He said female students pulled pins out of their hair to anchor down their music. The orchestra played on the wall outside of Beijing near a mountain pass that channeled the wind toward where they were playing.

The orchestra, composed mostly of Southeast Missouri State University students, left May 23 for Beijing. They performed four concerts in eight days, including a collaborative performance with Chinese students at Shanghai Normal University. The orchestra, which returned June 1, also played at the Central Conservatory of Music in Beijing and the Zhejiang Provincial University in Hangzhou, south of Shanghai.

The Southeast Missouri Symphony Orchestra performs on the Geat Wall of China near Beijing. Despite windy conditions, orchestra members said they appreciated the opportunity to play at the Great Wall. (Rhett Hendrickson ~ submitted photo)

Dr. Sara Edgerton, the orchestra's artistic director, said the Great Wall performance affected the players' emotions differently. She said one student teared up while looking across the landscape as she waited to play.

After the concert, in tribute to his Southern background, Steve Schaffner said he took his fiddle, climbed the wall and played "Devil Went Down to Georgia" for two women from Switzerland. Schaffner is the orchestra director at Cape Girardeau Central High School and plays violin with the Southeast orchestra.

Paul Thompson, a Southeast flute instructor, said the Great Wall performance was awe-inspiring despite the conditions, which were less than ideal, he said.

"I looked up at this path in the mountains and at the Great Wall, and it was really one of those goose-bump moments," he said.

More than 30 Southeast students participated in the trip, which also included five community members and four Southeast faculty.

"You can't imagine being on the Great Wall but getting to perform on it was absolutely wonderful," said Jennifer Samuels, a sophomore at Southeast studying music performance.

She said a bystander chased down her music after it blew away during the performance.

"I don't think he spoke any English, but that was cool that he came and got the music back," said Samuels, who plays the cello.

She said she gained perspective on what it is like to be a touring musician. The orchestra was constantly on the move and she played an unfamiliar rented cello.

"I think it's a little bit of insight of how life could be in the future," she said.

Edgerton said the students do not usually get the experience of longer tours. Students also sat in on classes at the universities and faculty members instructed Chinese students.

Edgerton said the trip took about four years to arrange and she said she will consider planning another "when the dust settles."

Those who made the journey recalled occasional signs of government control throughout the trip in the classroom and during sightseeing tours. Hendrickson said the group was cautioned not to talk about the Tiananmen Square uprising during a tour of the site.

"It was so strange to have plainclothes security people not quite so secretly shadowing our groups to see what we were talking about," said Hendrickson, who is a member of the Southeast Missouri Symphony Board.

Experiencing the contrast between ancient and modern China was also a common recollection of the trip. Hendrickson said visiting Hangzhou offered perspective on life outside the cities of Beijing and Shanghai. With mulberry orchards and tea trees covering the countryside, the last stop of their trip showed the classic view of Chinese life he said.

"Marco Polo described it as paradise on Earth, and he wasn't far off," Hendrickson said.

abusch@semissourian.com

388-3627

Pertinent address:

Beijing, China

Shanghai, China