MIchael Alexander: Cloud 9

[Jan. 5, 2011 XI'AN] This is a hard blog to even begin. I don't know where to start except to say that what happened tonight was indescribable.  The KSU Orchestra performed in a $100 million new concert hall to a packed house full of dignitaries from the entire province.  The orchestra played the best I have ever heard and Sam Skelton and John Lawless were amazing.  We had to do two encores (we only had one planned!!)! It was surreal and I could not be prouder of our orchestra. There were many tears shed tonight before the concert when Sam Robinson addressed the orchestra about what this experience meant to him and our university.

I think to sum up, the provincial government presented every member of the orchestra with an incredible gift bag. We ate lunch with the director general of the province's culture agency and he presented us with two terra cotta warrior statues that are amazing. The KSU Orchestra was invited back anytime to perform in this hall where next week Tan Dun and the Shanghai Symphony will perform.

I am too close to the experience to put this into words, but I know that I am lucky to work with students and colleagues like these. KSU is now on the map in Xi'an, China in a huge way.