From the Director:
One of my favorite memories from college is going on a choir tour to the east coast. The fact that I was on the tour as a flutist and not a singer didn’t matter. It was an incredible tour! I knew that if I were to ever have a chorus, I would tour the world with them.
Our first tour was in 2007 to the California Missions. Our first international tour was in 2011 to Ireland and Northern Ireland. Additional tours have included the East Coast of the US, Germany, Austria, England, Normandy, Italy, and Sicily. “Vox Concordia Mundi” means “Singing in Harmony Around the World.” Joining our voices with our fellow singing friends is a wonderful way to spread peace and harmony.
We have loved each venue, each chorus, and each audience member that we have met over these last 20 years!
Italy and Sicily “Viva La Musica!” Tour
Cuesta Concord Chorus at the Temple of Concordia, Agrigento, Sicily, July, 2024
“Vox Concordia Mundi” tour to England and Normandy
Cuesta Concord Chorus on Iowa Beach in Normandy on July 4, 2019. We had just performed at the American Cemetery to commemorate the 75th Anniversary of D-Day. The flag we are holding was flown on the US Nation’s Capital Building when we toured there in 2013. This flag goes on tour with us each time.
Cuesta Concord Chorus singing "Normandy"
Words by Cyril Crane, music by Dr. Ron Kean. The chorus commissioned this piece from Dr. Kean in honor of his father who fought at Normandy. The composer is conducting. Dr. Kean wrote a piccolo part for Cassanrda Tarantino to play. The song opens with “Taps” on solo piccolo. It was her great honor to play that piece for the soldiers buried there. The chorus sang in full voice on July 4, 2019 honoring the 75th Anniversary of the Storming of Normandy.
The Cuesta Concord Chorus at Neuschwanstein Castle, Germany in July 2017
Our dear Ann Coppenbarger is in the front bottom right corner with the baseball cap and big smile.
North County Chorus
North County Chorus with Neuschwanstein in the background, July 2017.
Cuesta Concord Chorus in Austria
Cuesta Concord Chorus in the Basilika St. Michael in Austria (Where Maria and Georg von Trapp were married in “The Sound of Music”)
Cuesta Concord Chorus Freedom Tour
“Freedom Tour:” The North County Chorus in front of the Nation’s Capital, July 2014. The flag on the building is being flown in our honor. The flag we are holding was flown in honor of Cassandra Tarantino. This is the tour that began our Veteran Outreach Program.
We performed at Veteran homes in West Virginia, Philadelphia, Massachusetts, and at the Walter Reed Hospital
Cuesta Concord Chorus flag ceremony
The North County Chorus giving Cassandra Tarantino an American Flag that had been flown on the Nation’s Capital Building in January of 2014.
Ireland Choir Tour
“Ireland Choir Tour” North County Chorus in the Belfast Cathedral, July 2011. This was our first international tour. It had originally been scheduled for 2010, but the chorus got waylaid in Philadelphia because of the Icelandic volcano eruption. Thanks to Travel Guard Insurance, we got all of our money back and succeeded in landing in Dublin in 2011.
California Mission Tour
“California Mission Tour:” The North County Chorus in front of Mission San Antonio de Padua, 2007. This was our first tour. Additional Missions where we performed included Mission Carmel and Mission San Rafael. We worked with Dr. Craig Russel, a Mission Music Specialist, on finding pieces that had not been performed in over 200 years. We brought those pieces back to life, and even got to sing them to the composers who were buried in the Missions where we performed!
Veteran Outreach
Cuesta Concord Chorus, Faces of Freedom Memorial, Atascadero
Photo: Faces of Freedom Memorial, Atascadero
Our Veteran Outreach Program began with our 2014 Freedom Tour. On this tour we performed
in Veteran Hospitals and Veteran Homes across the East Coast. Performing for these
men and women changed our lives. All we wanted to do was sing for them as a way of
saying, "Thank you for your service." What we received from them in gratitude changed
our lives.
Since 2014 all veterans and spouses are invited free to our concerts and events. We
sing at the Memorial Day and Veteran's Day services at the Paso Robles Cemetery. We
sing at the annual Lost at Sea Ceremony in Cayucos.
When we are on tour, we seek to find Veteran Memorial and Cemetery sites where we
perform.
"Alleluia," Randall Thompson, composed during WWII
Florence American Cemetery
Performance at Florence American Cemetery, June 16, 2024.
Performance at Salzburg Austria
Salzburg, Austria in front of the Greenhouse where “I am 16 Going on 17” was performed in “Sound of Music.
Tomb of the Unknown Soldier
Laying a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at Arlington Cemetery, June 29, 2014.