Every year, the School of Music grants a large budget to either the orchestra, the wind ensemble or the Adelphian Concert Choir to fund a multi-state tour.
Now it is the Adelphians’ turn to fulfill their ambitious plans as they sing throughout Utah, Idaho and Colorado over the course of six days during spring break.
This year, Adelphians’ repertoire represents a vast array of cultural and linguistic traditions, including pieces sung in German and Hebrew.
The variety of the repertoire displays the scope of the choir’s musical aptitude, hopefully enough to sway prospective students as they consider attending Puget Sound.
Dr. Steven Zopfi, esteemed conductor of Adelphians and the Portland Symphony Orchestra, chose Colorado as the tour’s primary destination about a year ago.
Each year, Zopfi recruits one of his singers to devote an immeasurable amount of time to help him plan the tour’s itinerary. For this year’s effort he selected Aaron Altabet.
Thus, when I sat down for coffee with Altabet last Saturday afternoon, I discovered that the task was in ready and tremendously competent hands.
“Planning the tour has been tough, but having Zopfi there has been a great help. He’s such an absurdly talented musician. The things he knows how to do and the art that he can make in conducting dozens of people is amazing—he’s like superhuman,” Altabet quipped.
As Altabet listed all the stops before reaching Colorado, he explained that what he and Zopfi had agreed upon depended on where significant portions of Adelphian alumni and potential Puget Sound students were located.
“We chose to go by bus because it was less expensive than airfare and that way, we were also able to go to Idaho,” Altabet added.
First, Adelphians will stop in Twin Falls and Grand Junction in Idaho, then Boulder and Denver in Colorado, followed by Vernal, Utah, then finally ending in Boise, Idaho on the return trip.
“I’m very excited for the sociocultural experience of staying with the different host families along the way,” Altabet noted in his quirky sort of way.
Many Puget Sound alumni and some Adelphians’ parents, including Jackie Hughes’ mother, helped coordinate host families along the way.
Altabet explained that he worked very closely with the Office of Alumni to reach out to potential sponsors.
If all goes according to plan, the choir will have extra time to spend with each other, family and friends in the Colorado capital.
“Free time is not the name of the game, but there will definitely be some at each stop for the singers,” Altabet said.
For the most part, Adelphians will be performing in high school concert halls, but also churches and possibly informally outdoors, as they did during their last spring tour in Victoria, Canada.
“Next year, I would say people should expect Adelphians to tour through Oregon or possibly Eastern Washington,” Altabet concluded.