After more than a year of and , the Madrigal singers take-off tonight from JFK airport to begin their 10-day concert tour through the United Kingdom.
The group will perform at several venues as part of a cultural program organized by the Greater London Authority to coincide with the 2012 Olympics. Musicians and artists from all over the world will join the Tennent Madrigals in Great Britain to represent their countries.
The trip begins with tomorrow's arrival and a day of sightseeing in Dublin, Ireland. The group's first performance takes place at St. Patrick's Cathedral on Friday, 1 p.m. They travel to Canterbury Saturday night for a concert the next day at the Royal College of Music in London at 5 p.m. They take the stage again Monday morning at the Canterbury Cathedral at noon, followed by a chance to catch some Olympic soccer action at Wembley Stadium.
Their final performance is on Wednesday, August 8 at the Southwark Cathedral at 3:45 p.m. The group leaves the next day and arrives at JFK at 1:15 p.m. A web page has been set up for the group to post pictures and notes during the trip.
The Tennent group was selected last July after choral director Tyrone Dinkins sent an audition tape. Dinkins oversaw the trip's planning and fundraising efforts, but will not join the group in London since he departed the school in late May. District Superintendant Dr. Jenny Cressman could not be reached for comment on Dinkins.
The singers will be chaperoned by Julie Flack, music director at , and Julie Henrich, assistant principal at Tennent.
