For lunch, most of us ate schnitzel, which is essential pork that has been flattened, covered in breadcrumbs, and fried. It is traditionally served over French fries with a salad on the side. The schnitzel was delicious, the umbrellas shielded us from the sun overhead, and we all enjoyed visiting with each other after a weekend apart. Then, we rehearsed. Because we only had an hour, we had to work quickly and efficiently. This means that we didn't get to play every note in every song, but we practiced all of the sections that needed to be refreshed. It took us awhile to adjust to the new space (it reverberated impressively well), but we finally came together as an ensemble just as rehearsal was finishing. We walked out confident that our performance later that evening would go well.
After a bit of independent shopping time, we went to attend a meeting with the Bürgermeister (the mayor of Bietigheim-Bissingen). There were several important speeches, important ceremonial things were said, important ceremonial gifts were exchanged (like the official flag of Downers Grove), important pictures were taken, which culminated in both cities ceremonially agreeing to continue the exchange. We got drinks afterward. They even had orange juice for those of us who don't really like bubbles in our drinks.
For dinner, we returned to our host families so that we could also change for the concert. With only an hour, it was a little rushed, but my host mother promised me dessert when I came home (it was strawberries and yogurt. I think I have found a new favorite dessert).
The concert itself was amazing. The youth orchestra (minus the strings) that went before us was very good. We all enjoyed the old western medley, the two beautiful classical works, and silently singing along to a Frozen medley. It helped to relieve any nerves that we had before we stepped on stage to perform. We played our entire concert well and even managed an encore using the "Stars and Stripes Forever March". The audience was electric. We got standing ovations for two songs before the last song before we encored (which makes four standing ovations total, which is a lot). They seemed to appreciate our attempts to communicate with them in German. They laughed at our jokes, they applauded for soloists, and they did it all with a smile on their faces. Even though we made a few mistakes (you can't play a concert without making mistakes), they were so excited that we simply couldn't dwell on these mistakes. We reflected their energy back and left talking about how great the concert was, not about how we messed up a rhythm or played a flat instead of a natural. The concert was simply beautiful.
This is why we play music. Sure, we go amazing places and see awesome, life-changing things. Sure, we make lifelong friends and learn about ourselves more deeply with every note. But that's not why we started. We started because music is beautiful. We started because we wanted to see beauty, make beauty, and share beauty. With an entire auditorium changed (even if only for a moment), we are excited to go into the rest of our tour, sharing the beauty we have with anyone willing to listen.
