single default
Our Tour in China!
Well we did it! I am writing this from the airplane on our trip home from Shanghai. If our layover in Chicago is long enough (we all go to our home cities from there) it may get posted right away. If not – it will likely be after a good long sleep in my own bed! I hope that you have enjoyed some of the videos of our tour in China that were posted along the way. I want to thank our trusty friend and media helper Lisa Hawkins for posting them for us. We couldn’t use Facebook or Twitter from China so I “drop boxed” them to her and she made sure they were shared with everyone.
It is really hard to put an experience like we just had into words. It would be easier with music (and that may come!) Of course it is always an honour to share our music with audiences everywhere, but it struck me again how small the world really is when it comes to humans being able to connect. We were a half a world away – everything seemed different, new and foreign – yet every time we stepped on stage there was a connection that is difficult to describe. You can see it in peoples faces, in their body language; in their closed eyes, their smiles, their clapping, their tears. It was certainly a challenge to perform without the introductions and banter that has become as much a part of what we do on stage as anything else, to rely solely on the notes we play and sing to get our message across. But it was a challenge we embraced and it proved refreshing. The theatres we played in were all quite large but the lights were such that we could always see at least part of the audience. And the reactions that people had throughout our performances meant more to me than anything else. More than the wonders of the world we were lucky enough to see, more than the fact that a girl from Rankin was touring China with her own spectacular band, more than the autographs and pictures after the shows that made us feel like rock stars. It doesn’t matter where I go, what I do, in the end it’s all about the music. So so so lucky.
Unlike many tours, we did have time to take in the sights, sounds and tastes of the cities we visited. Highlights included the Great Wall, Lingyin Temple, Forbidden City, and the Pearl & Silk Market. We performed seven shows in all. It was a pleasure to work with Joy Titan, our agents in China. They took a chance on us without ever having met us (thanks George Gao and Wendy Solomon for the glowing recommendations!) and they were well organized and caring. We made some really great friends within the company and it was difficult to say goodbye – thank you all!
It wasn’t all easy. There was a lot of travel…by taxi, plane, subway, train, bus. I mean lots! We got really tired. Sometimes even with our expert guides from Joy Titan communication was difficult. Especially at sound check 🙂 We were far away with less communication with our loved ones than usual. But I didn’t just have two wonderful musicians to perform with, I had two of my best friends by my side. And that made all the difference.
I would also like to acknowledge the support of the Ontario Arts Council who so graciously provided us with travel assistance through the National & International Touring Program. This tour would not have been possible without their support.
And now it’s home. Time to get a bit of rest and think ahead. Prepare for our May tour and our summer tours, get the new record out, practice and write with new inspiration…but most of all to share our experiences with our family, friends and loved ones. Because at the end of the day, nothing means as much without those people to share it all with.
Dream big and live hard my friends….
April
