The sweet, mellifluous sounds of the Claflin University Concert Choir could still be heard early Thursday morning upon the students’ return from a trip halfway around the world.

The students returned from a 10-day tour of China, where they made stops in Xi’an, Shanghai and Beijing. They joined other choirs from across the state and nation in what is being called a “Stunning Choral Tribute to the 2008 Beijing Olympics: Perform in Harmony with Olympic Spirit.”

The students were treated to a “Welcome Back Breakfast” at the 1869 Club in the University Dining Center, sponsored by the North Carolina/South Carolina chapter of the African-American Leadership Forum. Chapter Chairman Tory Ward thanked the choir members for their professional, disciplined conduct during trip.

“You well represented us, and I hope you had a great time,” said Ward, who is also the university’s director of planning, operations and maintenance.

While a bit tired from traveling, the group was filled with excitement and eager to share their cultural experiences during the breakfast.

“All I can say is, ‘Wow!’ Experiencing another culture was just awesome. There is so much that we learned,” said Andre Lemon, a 21-year-old music education major.

Lemon said the country’s rich history was illustrated during the choir’s visit to places such as the Temple of Heaven and the Forbidden City, which was the Chinese imperial palace from the mid-Ming Dynasty to the end of the Quig Dynasty. It is also the world’s largest palace complex, covering 74 hectares.

“We also visited various places for shopping and learned about how silk and forms of jade are made. I wish that many of my other colleagues could have experienced this trip,” Lemon said.

The experience also included an exchange concert at Yu Xin School in Beijing, where a group of elementary school children sang what Lemon considered a touching rendition of “We Are the World.”

“That was the highlight of our trip. It really touched a whole lot of us in a way that we’ll never forget. It was the music that brought us together. When were singing the Chinese folk songs, they clapped every time. It wasn’t all about speaking and talking to them, but it’s the music that really connects something that nobody can really break,” Lemon said.

“It’s just amazing to see how music can connect all parts of the world. I’m just overwhelmed. I definitely have to go back one day,” he said.

Petrina Phillips, a rising senior mass communications major from Trinidad and Tobago, said the trip was a cultural eye-opener for both the students and the Chinese. Like Lemon, she said the choir’s performance at the school was the highlight of the trip for her.

“Those little children came out and really sang, ‘We Are the World.’ I could have packed and gone home after that. Music transcends everything. You don’t need language or any special song. Music is just music. It encapsulates cultures. It encapsulates a lifestyle,” Phillips said. “It delivers a message without having to translate words and that was amazing.”

She said it was fun and exciting traveling to Xi’an, which she considered China’s cultural hub, and Beijing, which is the country’s political center.

“They have superb architectural design in Beijing. It’s amazing. The buildings are old, but they have stood the test of time. They have magnificent gardens like you have never seen anywhere else. Shanghai is like New York. It still maintains some of its cultural aspects, but it’s more modern. There was one building that was 104 floors in the air,” Phillips said.

Choir member Quahnkatiere Marshall said, “It was a very heart-warming experience. I feel blessed. I hope everyone else was grateful.”

Choral director Dr. Isaiah McGee said Claflin’s rich history can not be told without including the late James A. McDaniel, a former university choir director whose widow, Myrtle, has carried on her husband’s legacy of tirelessly supporting the choir.

“He taught me how to give back to Claflin, and I will continue to do so,” said McDaniel, noting that McGee is filling her husband’s shoes well.

McGee presented Claflin First Lady Alice Tisdale with a black pearl earring and necklace set as a token of appreciation for the university’s support of the choir.

McGee was thanked for his work when the teary-eyed choir members dedicated a rendition of “If I Can Help Somebody” to him.

“That’s my motto. Somebody helped me, so this is a way that I can afford them an opportunity to be exposed to different things. The trip wasn’t about me, it was about them. I just hope it changed their lives in some way,” he said.

T&D Staff Writer Dionne Gleaton can be reached by e-mail at dgleaton@timesanddemocrat.com or by phone at 803-533-5534.

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