Throughout its 26 year history, Santiago Strings has been committed to building connections, not only between students in the ensemble but also with a larger community of audiences and musical peers.  In expanding its horizons, Santiago Strings has put this mission at the center of its next tour by choosing a location that already has significant ties to the Pacific Symphony: Costa Rica.

 

The music director of the Pacific Symphony, Carl St.Clair, also serves as the music director for the National Symphony Orchestra in Costa Rica, and he has been an important voice in shaping the mission and structure of the tour.  Maestro St.Clair has been a staunch supporter of the Youth Ensembles since its inception, and he feels that Santiago Strings is the right ensemble from the PSYE family to embark upon this project.  Building upon his existing relationships with the musical community, Santiago Strings aims to build a partnership that leaves a lasting impact both upon our students and the musical community of Costa Rica.

 

Pacific Symphony Santiago Strings will be based in the capital of San José during the course of this six day tour.  From this central location, students will have the opportunity to engage in cultural exchanges with musical peers and to explore the cultural and natural landscape of Costa Rica.  Workshops with peer ensembles will take place in the idyllic town of San Ramón and in Cartágo the old capital city of Costa Rica nestled at the base of the Irazú volcano. These events will allow students to have meaningful interactions with other musicians from the SINEM program which is patterned after the increasingly popular El Sístema method.  In addition to engaging with the local artistic community, there will also be opportunities for sight-seeing that will highlight the rich culture and natural environment of Costa Rica.