Hello everyone!
It's been a very busy couple of days. We are in Vienna now, and finally have reliable Wi-Fi! Yesterday, we started with a concert by our own three Advanced Chamber Ensembles. The Brass Quintet, Woodwind Quintet, and String Quartet did a concert for their friends in the orchestra in a lovely room at the University in Salzburg. Afterwards we had time to tour Salzburg, most of us venturing up to the fortress for amazing views of the city. Then back on the bus for the Sound of Music tour on our way to Gmunden (about an hour from Salzburg) for a concert hosted by a local choral group. We were very warmly welcomed, but completely surprised when we saw how many steps there were to the theater entrance--loading and unloading all the (very heavy percussion) instruments was a real challenge, and we are so grateful to the students, the chaperones, and the members of the shadow tour who helped us with the load in and out!

This morning we had an early start as we began the trip to Vienna. We stopped on the way at a fabulous road-side restaurant--nothing like the highway stops in the USA! Lots of fresh food made to order and a fantastic view of the surrounding countryside.

Once in center-city Vienna, we made our way to St. Stephen's Cathedral for the opening ceremonies of the Summa Cum Laude Festival. It was almost like the Olympics and we were happy to be represented by trumpet-section member Bret Magnolia who introduced NJYS to all the other participating groups--32 groups from 14 countries!

Tomorrow, some more sight-seeing, rehearsal and preparation for the big competition day on Sunday. We'll be competing from 3:35 - 4:05 Sunday afternoon--that should 9:35 Eastern Daylight Time, so cross fingers and send positive vibes for us! We will find out the results on Sunday evening.