Producers: Mark Alberta, Hallie Beacham, Bob Bonds, Dennis Corcoran
Community Engagement: Diana Deacon, Bonnie Messing
In June 2016 108 YACsters traveled to Vietnam and Singapore. We performed the Mozart Requiem at the ancient Hanoi Opera House and again at the ultra-modern Esplanade in Singapore. In Hanoi we collaborated with the National Opera and Ballet Orchestra for the performance. In Singapore we collaborated with the National University of Singapore (NUS) Choir and the very fine Metropolitan Festival Orchestra.
Esplanade performance of the Mozart Requiem with YAC and the NUS Choir accompanied by the Metropolitan Festival Orchestra
We performed in two a cappella concerts singing Yale Glee Club favorites. In Saigon we shared the stage with the brand new choir of the Saigon Conservatory of Music. In Singapore we shared the stage with the NUS Choir, performing in the theater at the brand new Yale-NUS College.
For most of us this was a first visit to Vietnam; for a few older members of YAC it was a return to a place where they had fought in the 1960s. Classical Movements — our tour management company — arranged visits to some memorable spots: Halong Bay, Mekong Delta, and the Cu Chi Tunnels — the site of some of the most difficult battles of the Vietnam War. But the war is a distant memory for most Vietnamese. The economy of Vietnam is booming. The U.S. Ambassador to Vietnam told us that Vietnam was the most important U.S. trading partner among all of the Asian nations. Our visit to Hanoi was covered in a 40-minute special on Vietnam TV (in English with Vietnamese subtitles).
We reached out to a number of groups along the way, providing fellowship and support. In Vietnam we brought gifts to an orphanage and donated a new sound system to the music program at the Vietnam Association for the Blind, In Singapore we volunteered at a food bank and sang at a home for senior citizens and at a hospital.
Our performance of the Mozart Requiem at the Esplanade in Singapore was recorded on video: