1993 marked an important milestone in the life of the Rogue Valley Chorale. To celebrate the twentieth year of its formation, members decided to take a 20th Anniversary Concert Tour of Austria, Hungary and the Czech Republic. Led by founding director Lynn E. Sjolund, a group of forty-eight singers and eighteen family members and friends embarked on this exciting trip on June 23 and flew to Munich, Germany.

The tour was arranged under the auspices of the Friendship Ambassadors Foundation. Jacqueline Dougherty, Associate Director of Music and Education traveled with the Medford group. She is a native of Medford and had sung with the Chorale for a number of years. Jacqueline may also be remembered here as the founding director of the Siskiyou Singers. Her expertise and knowledge throughout the two weeks added to the group's delight in the experience.

En Route to Salzburg, Austria, the Chorale was fascinated by the "story-book" scenes streaming past the bus windows. Every cottage was decorated with colorful flower boxes and framed with a lush, green lawn. In the distance, dense forests and soaring Alps complimented the scenery and acted as a backdrop throughout the journey.

Chorale members were not only delighted with the beautiful scenery of Austria, the warmth and congeniality of the people was evident throughout the six days spent there. Three concerts were presented during this time. The first was presented at the Mormon Cultural Center, Salzburg, in collaboration with a local choir. When the Chorale entered the auditorium, the audience clapped in rhythm - a very thrilling experience to be welcomed so warmly so far from home.

Two days later the second concert was presented in Bad Goisern, a picturesque village high in the Alps. The group took part in the regular Sunday morning service in a Lutheran Church. The church was built after the reformation. The Chorale took part in the regular Sunday morning service and although it was conducted in German, warmth and appreciation emanated from the congregation.

While in Bad Goisern, the Chorale was invited to share dinner and a musical evening with a local chorus.  The Austrian singers were dressed in their native costumes; men in lederhosen and women in colorful skirts and blouses.  Their singing and yodelling set the mood for a festive evening.
 
For the music lover, a trip to Austria is an enriching experience. Tour members were enthralled to visit the birthplace of Mozart in Salzburg. His presence is keenly felt when viewing his pianoforte, original manuscripts and letters. Later on in the tour the group thrilled to his opera Cosi Fan Tutte presented at the Prague Opera House. While in Vienna many members attended a performance of the Strauss opera Die Fledermaus. 

On June 30th the tour left Vienna for Veszprem, Hungary. The focal point of this portion of the trip was to take part in the "American-Magyar Cultural Festival". It was a privilege to perform Zoltan Kodaly's Te Deum  in his native country. Chorale members were intermixed with Hungarians in the massed choir. Chosen to sing the difficult soprano solos was the Chorale's own Susan Olson. The old saying that "music is the universal language" was never truer. A quote from the local Veszprem newspaper The Naplo reads "Borderless and national differences were washed away, fate, national and private, forgotten and mankind is the center of history. . . . Our American guests have produced their lives' best concert" 

On July third the group departed for Prague, the capital of the Czech Republic and once the capital of the Holy Roman Empire. It is also known as the city of spires and bridges. En route, the group passed through Slovakia, which looked; bleak and ill kept, in sharp contrast to the lush splendor of Austria.

The last concert of the tour was given in St. Giles Cathedral, a magnificent baroque edifice with high vaulted ceilings, gold statues and elaborate decorations. The singers were amazed by the acoustics in this centuries-old building. The late Deane Tack, a member of the Chorale, had this to say of the glorious sounds generated by the chorus: "After releasing a chord, they were transfixed by the ethereal beauty of their voices as the sound floated up to the lofty ceilings and gently diminished in celestial echoes."

The Chorale arrived home in Medford on July 7th, having been uplifted by their two-week sojourn in Europe.