Vienna: “A True Sense of Belonging” Posted on January 28th, 2019 by Stephanie Ash

—Dispatch from Zach Diedrich, junior vocal music education major from Bloomington, Minn.

Since my first year, when I had the honor and privilege of joining the Gustavus Choir as a bass, international choir tour 2019 was an elusive concept that seemed so far away.

When I found out we were going to Europe I was ecstatic. When I found out we would be performing in some of the most beautiful cathedrals in the world, I was ecstatic. And when I found out the breakfast buffet at our hotel in Vienna had bougie espresso drinks, I was ecstatic.

I write this blog post on our tour bus leaving our first stop of many: Vienna, Austria. My dream has become a reality, and processing it is something I have not had much time to do until now. From walking tours of the city center, to visiting the apartments of Mozart and Beethoven, to seeing Falstaff at the Vienna State Opera, this trip has exceeded every expectation I had set.

Then, my eyes set upon St. Stephen’s Cathedral in the heart of Vienna. I had just turned a corner when all of a sudden this massive cathedral seemed to appear out of nowhere. When I saw it my heartbeat quickened, chills ran through my body, and the words “oh wow” came out of my mouth. In one second, this place that had only existed in photos online became real.

We had a half-hour afternoon rehearsal in St. Stephen’s the day of our Saturday evening performance, and after only 30 seconds of singing, I knew that it would be a special performance.

That evening, a phrase stuck with me more than it has in the past. As we were singing “The Road Home” by Stephen Paulus, the choir comes in halfway through the third verse with the phrase, “There is no such beauty as where you belong…”

Wowza.

In this moment I had watery eyes and a humble spirit. It was in this moment during our first concert, in the most magnificent place of worship I have ever been, that this once elusive concept of a trip became real and tangible for me. In this moment, I felt a true sense of belonging with this choir, and really appreciated the beauty and privilege of that.

I have had many of these “wowza” moments in our first two full days of this tour, and I absolutely cannot wait for the many more to come.