[Congressional Record Volume 147, Number 87 (Thursday, June 21, 2001)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1174]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




      HONORING THE YALE ALUMNI CHORUS FOR OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT

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                          HON. ROSA L. DeLAURO

                             of connecticut

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, June 21, 2001

  Ms. DeLAURO. Mr. Speaker, it is my great pleasure to rise today to 
extend my deep congratulations and best wishes to the members and 
friends of the Yale Alumni Chorus as they gather to begin their 
Tercentenary Tour celebrating the 300th Anniversary of the founding of 
Yale University and the 140th anniversary of the founding of the Yale 
Glee Club. Today marks the beginning of their journey to Russia, Wales, 
and England where they will continue in their mission as ``ambassadors 
of song,'' promoting international goodwill and choral singing at its 
finest.
  The world-renowned Yale Glee Club was first established 140 years ago 
and has traveled extensively throughout the United States, Europe, 
Latin America and Asia. The Yale Alumni Chorus was established by the 
Yale Glee Club Associates, an alumni association founded by Prescott S. 
Bush, father of former President George Herbert W. Bush and grandfather 
to President George W. Bush. Created only four years ago, this group 
enables the loyal alumni of the Yale Glee Club to carry on its legacy 
of harmony, friendship, and goodwill. Their inaugural tour of China 
only three years ago included performances with the principal 
orchestras of Beijing, Xi'an, and Shanghai and earned them a first-
prize award at the China International Chorus Festival.
  This Tercentenary Tour will bring the over four hundred participants 
to Russia where they will perform at the White Nights Festival with the 
Mariinsky Orchestra and later with the Moscow Chamber Orchestra. The 
group will provide the opening concert for the International Eisteddfod 
Festival in Wales and will end their tour at St. Paul's Cathedral in 
London where they will sing with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra at a 
gala celebrating Yale University's 300th birthday. Throughout their 
tour, the group will be preforming classic American folk music as well 
as several works composed by Yale University Alumni. Perhaps the most 
moving and meaningful however, will be the group's performance in 
Wrexham, Wales where they will participate in a memorial tribute to 
Elihu Yale, the university's namesake.
  Comprised of three generations of Yale alumni representing sixty 
different graduating classes and hailing from thirty three states and 
six additional countries, they are a truly remarkable group. It is my 
honor and privilege to stand today and extend my best wishes to the 
Yale Alumni Chorus as they begin their Tercentenary Tour. With their 
passion for music and unquestionable dedication to their alma mater, I 
am confident that they will represent Yale University, the State of 
Connecticut, and the United States with dignity and integrity.

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