CUWinds Costa Rica

 A rainbow arched over the town square of Poas just as the Cornell Wind Ensemble was rehearsing in the auditorium/basketball court nearby.

It was late afternoon and the square was cris crossed by churchgoers, families, and errant dogs looking for a snack. A flag flapped in the stiff breeze and a cool mist blew down the mountain.

The Winds tutored students all afternoon at the large school in Poas and now both groups split off and changed clothes for the concert. Clusters of Poas students toting instruments and wearing freshly pressed concert black and whites strode down the uneven sidewalks toward the venue.

The auditorium was a modest but servicable large concrete structure with a tin roof and tattered basketball nets dangling over the musician’s chairs.  The bleachers lining one side quickly filled with families wearing their Sunday best; as word of the concert spread, people strode down from the square to have a look and listen.

Introductions were passed in Spanish and English.  The Poas students began the concert, playing tentatively but well. The Cornell students joined them for “Wildwood Overature.”  The Cornell Winds wedged themselves amongst the Costa Rican students — all playing together on a piece they had worked on in master class during the day.  The full house was very enthusiastic; a group of Canadian expatriates who are boosters and organizers of the effort noted that the Poas students have made great leaps since the first visit by the Winds, two years ago. Now their playing is two years’ advanced, the community is behind them, their instruments are better and there are more of them.  Poas hosted the concert with pride, installing bright red curtains behind the band and overflowing the venue with spectators.

The Cornell Wind Ensemble opened with the overature from “West Side Story,” moved on to the beautiful “O Magnum Mysterium,” by Lauridsen; “Concertino for Four Percussionists by David Gillingham; closing with the crowd-pleasing “Selections from ‘The Wiz.’” Four gentlemen sitting in front of me went a little crazy when the horn section stood up, blasting. They scrambled for their cameras to capture the moment as if they were at Las Vegas and Doc Severson was playing. 

The group performed Offenbach’s “Ballet Parissien” for an encore — another number with choreography created by the students. During rehearsals Cindi had veto power over the choreography, declaring at one point, “You — dancing looks very bad when you do it.” But they got it together and it looked charming.

After the standing ovations, the Cornell Winds presented the students from Poas with several new instruments, a hefty collection of sheet music (sorely needed), T-shirts and a plaque featuring a photo of the group. After posing for group photos, congratulating one another, exchanging gifts, wiping their tears and helping to clear the venue, the Cornell group packed their instruments, boarded the bus, and bid goodbye to Poas.

Back at their hotel, students mingled, pulled out their laptops, tried in vain to call their parents and reflected on the spirit of the day. “The audience was amazing; one of the best audiences I’ve ever played for,”  said Tom Weber — a percussionist and graduate student in Engineering.  The Cornell students basked in their success at the end of their first successful day on tour.  We sat and talked for hours and the topic was “teachers” — the legacy great teachers leave for their students.

I wondered as we talked if these young students realized that they had become teachers. They had left an imprint much more indelible — but as unforgettable – as the rainbow gracing the town square in a place called Poas.

Amy Dickinson

January 10, 2010

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