Friday, June 18, 2010

Day 8 - Sandnes

A busy day, and a long day, but one that ended on a high note. The day started out with a visit to the Oil Museum in Stavanger. Then the choir had a concert in the Stavanger cathedral, took a short break, had a second concert with Sandnes’ Viva Choir, and then enjoyed a great party hosted by the Viva Choir.

Oil is Norway’s major source of income. There are many off-shore drilling platforms along the coast of Norway, exploiting some of the richest oil fields in the world. The Oil Museum in Stavanger hosts many interesting and interactive exhibits of the technology involved.
The singers really enjoyed tumbling down the escape shute, and finding their way in the “dark room”, which simulates a platform emergency situation at night.

The first concert of the day was in a very exciting and special location, the Stavanger cathedral. The cathedral is the oldest still operating in Norway, built early in the 12th century.
The acoustics were amazing, and Dr. Munsen took the opportunity to attempt some recording for the next choir CD.

Returning to Sandnes, the singers went to their host families for a short rest. Refreshed for the second concert of the day, the choir enjoyed singing with the Viva choir:
This was a wonderful meeting of two great choirs. The Viva choir has won prestigious competitions in Norway. With the concert alternating Viva and ACC performances, the audience could really enjoy quality choir performances of different styles.

In the evening, the Viva choir invited the ACC choir to a party. This was a very enjoyable event, for the singers from both choirs, and all the adults, too.
After dinner the Viva singers had organized games, where mixed groups of Viva/ACC singers would have to solve puzzles and perform tasks. Of course we also joined in for some songs, and before anybody knew it was quite late in the evening. A great time!