By Harlan Rose
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While most students likely spent their spring break at home, with family or at the beach, 85 students enrolled in MHS’ music program visited Japan from March 14 to 21. On the trip, students not only toured the country but also performed for Fuchu High School, a sister school to MHS, in an effort to connect with other cultures internationally through music.
“The goal of this trip was to spread music not only on a community level, but an international level,” said Sophomore Rachel Sunada, “In addition to an exchange at Fuchu High School, we learned more about Japanese culture.”
In deciding where the music students would go this year, the music directors looked at where they had gone in the past, such as Australia and Italy, and eventually picked Japan as the ultimate destination. “(Japan) was a different part of the world that we could explore and share the culture of Japan. Also, it has been 10 years since we’ve done an all-Japan tour so we thought it was about time,” said Fine Arts teacher Curtis Hiyane, who planned the trip.
Upon arriving in Japan, the students first spent several days in Osaka. “I’d like to say Osaka (was my favorite place) because it was such a different atmosphere because it’s much colder. It was 30 degrees, so it was pretty cold,” said Sophomore Kiersten Reyes. Sunada added, “My favorite place was Osaka Castle because of the feeling of standing in such a historical building. You’re literally standing on a temple that had a major role in the unification of Japan.”
During their stay in Osaka, the students traveled to Hiroshima and performed at Fuchu High School. At Fuchu, the music students performed several cultural Hawaiian pieces, such as the “Hilo March,” “Bellingrath Gardens,” the “Queen’s Prayer” and the “Ashokan Farewell.” “It was a joint concert so the whole school actually came out and listened to the concert,” Hiyane explained, “We got to share the culture of the Hawaiian hula and some choral selections, we actually sang the ‘Queen’s Prayer.’” In return, the Fuchu orchestra performed for MHS’ students. “Fuchu High School has an amazing music program. I was blown away at the quality of music they had with a relatively small group,” Sunada said.
After the performance, Hiyane felt that the Japanese and American cultures had come closer together. “The sharing and the appreciation of the different cultures, the (Japanese) culture and the American and the Hawaiian culture and watching the students appreciate that, I guess, is the biggest appreciation,” Hiyane said, “I hope that it broadened their appreciation and realized that the world is not a very big (place) and is actually kind of a small place and that there’s a lot of things in common.”
Afterwards, the students journeyed to Okinawa before returning home. There, they toured the city and ended their trip with a farewell dinner at a traditional Okinawan restaurant. At the dinner, the musicians reminisced on the memories they had on the trip. “I was able to experience Japanese culture firsthand and compare it to American culture. In mainland Japan, we saw shrines and temples and in Okinawa, we ate at a local restaurant and had a traditional dance performance,” Sunada said. Reyes added, “(At the restaurant) all of the groups gave their chaperones a little gift and it was really nice because everyone (was) expressing their feelings about the trip and reminiscing because it was our last day and it was really nice.”
The students of the music program enjoyed their time in Japan and those returning for the 2015-2016 school year are looking forward to the opportunity to go on another trip to spread their love for music across the world.
