Join us in New York City, the center of the performing arts world! From Opera to dance and theater, to gospel music, New York City has it all. While participating in the New York City Choral Music Exchange, your choir will stay in a lovely hotel in the heart of Manhattan on Broadway. Known for its restaurants, entertainment, and big city lights, Broadway is the center of this exciting Choral Exchange. Participating choirs will perform in fabulous venues beside some of the world’s most famous theaters. Venues include the beautiful St. Malachy’s Church in the heart of Manhattan, one of the city’s beautiful public atriums, and the opportunity to sing and exchange with a local Brooklyn area choir at the Friendship Concert. New York City is also famous for Harlem’s Gospel choirs, who were leaders in the Gospel Music Tradition. Your choir will be treated to a lively Gospel performance in the heart of the city and experience the excitement of traditional Gospel song in an optional Gospel Music Workshop. The Big Apple awaits your choir in 2010!

THURSDAY, MARCH 25, 2010

WELCOME TO NEW YORK!

Choirs will be arriving in New York City throughout the day. Upon arrival, a Music Contact International Tour Manager will greet your choir and assist with hotel check in and arrival information. A magnet for much of the world, New York City is unique in its compact size and the density and diversity of its population. The most talented performers in the world grace New York’s Lincoln Center, and Broadway stages each year. And, its most famous buildings and museums such as the Empire State Building and the Metropolitan Museum of Art draw thousands of visitors each year.

Choir members will settle in their room and your tour manager will provide options for dinner* in Manhattan before returning via motor coach to the hotel. This evening choirs will gather at a Broadway venue for a special Welcoming Performance by a talented local New York City area Gospel Choir.

FRIDAY, MARCH 26, 2010

NEW YORK CITY | CONCERTS

After breakfast served in the hotel, embark on a guided City Tour of New York City with a local guide. Explore the island of Manhattan. First see Central Park, a green oasis in the center of New York’s concrete jungle. The park covers 840 acres and offers landscaped gardens, as well as many opportunities for recreational sports. Nearby, the Lincoln Center for Performing Arts, one of New York’s finest performing arts institutions, occupies an eight-block area. The complex can seat nearly 15,000 spectators for events such as opera, ballet and film. Later travel south to see New York’s famous and colorful Chinatown. The narrow streets with oriental shops and restaurants seem like a city within a city. In contrast to Chinatown is cosmopolitan Greenwich Village. Journey down Wall Street, one of the most famous 1/3-mile stretches in the world. Around the corner on Broad Street is the New York Stock Exchange, where the chaotic trading takes place daily. Finally, view the Statue of Liberty, from the southern tip of Manhattan, Battery Park.

Following the tour, there will be time for lunch* in the city. Choirs will perform Individual Concerts at local venues around the city this afternoon. Performance settings include schools, senior homes, hospitals, churches, museums, or public spaces such as the United Nations public Lobby, or Madison Avenue Sculpture Garden Atrium. Optionally, a gospel workshop can be arranged for your choir*.

This evening, participating choirs will gather in New York City’s Actors Chapel, St. Malachy’s Church, to participate in the Choral Exchange Performance. Share your voices with other participating choirs and listen to their repertoire of music from around the world! The beautifully redone Chapel is in the heart of mid-town Manhattan, in the Theater District where many visitors and performers of Broadway will be able to come enjoy this evening’s choral performance. This evening, ask your Tour Manager for dinner suggestions in New York City*. Return via motor to your hotel in the evening.
 

SATURDAY, MARCH 27, 2010

NEW YORK CITY | CONCERT

Venture out this morning to explore “The Big Apple” on your own. Your tour manager will be available to answer questions and provide suggestions.
In the afternoon you will take part in a Friendship Concert in the borough of Brooklyn. Visit a community church in Brooklyn where visiting choirs and the host choir will exchange culture and get to know each other through a shared love of singing. The afternoon performance will be followed by refreshments and time to meet the host congregation. Enjoy dinner in Manhattan*. Choirs may choose to see a Broadway production this evening*.

SUNDAY, MARCH 28, 2010

DEPART NEW YORK CITY | CONCERT

This morning visit one of New York City’s beautiful churches where your choir is invited to perform as part of the morning worship service.
On Sunday afternoon, choirs will depart New York City to return home or extend their stay in the USA.

*Optional activity. Please call for choices, availability, and pricing.
 

Accommodations

Choirs choose between Times Square, Manhattan accommodations or suburb accommodations on the West side of the Hudson River, in New Jersey.

• 3 nights in Hilton® - brand hotel, with private bath, including all hotel service charges and taxes, on the West side of the Hudson River, In New Jersey

OR

• 3 nights in Hilton® - brand hotel, with private bath, including all hotel service charges and taxes, in the Times Square area of Manhattan

Transportation

The following transfers in a modern climate controlled motor coach with a professional driver

• Day 1: Airport transfer to hotel
• Day 2: City Tour and round trip transfer to individual concert
• Day 3: Roundtrip transfer from the hotel to the Friendship Concert
• Day 4: Transfer to local church and then on to airport of departure

Arriving with your own motor coach? Subtract up to $100 per person

Meals

• Breakfast daily. Additional meals can be arranged upon request.

Performance Opportunities and Rehearsals

• Choral Exchange Concert
• Individual concert in school, senior home, hospital, or other local venue
• Friendship Concert
• Sunday Morning worship service

Tour Manager

• Full-time Music Contact International tour manager to accompany your group during their entire stay, from arrival to departure.

Complimentary Places

• One complimentary land package covering inclusions listed above for a minimum of 30 paying travelers

Additional Materials

• A handbook including detailed tour itinerary and additional regional information will be provided for each member of the group
• Keepsake DVD video of photos from your tour set to your group’s music

St. Malachy’s Church, “The Actor’s Chapel”

Nestled on West 49th Street, in the heart of the theater district, is St. Malachy's Roman Catholic Church, now fondly referred to as the “Actor’s Church”. Although the neighborhood has evolved significantly since it was built in 1902, St. Malachy's remains an active and integral part of this most eclectic and dynamic community.

Fortunately, the priests and leaders of St. Malachy's have all been men and women of their times. They worked to adapt St. Malachy's to meet the needs of its new parishioners as the theater district grew. Masses and confessions were all rearranged to accommodate the rigors of theatre and nightly life. Finally, with the construction of the Actors' Chapel below the main church in 1920, St. Malachy's became well-known as a haven of worship for the entertainment community.

The number of actors from stage and screen who have passed through the hallowed walls are too numerous to mention! St. Malachy’s serves as the “meeting hall” for the Screen Actors’ Guild and Actors Equity Association. Other notable events include: Douglas Fairbanks marriage to Joan Crawford, Herb Shriner’s children’s baptisms, and the grand tribute to Italian actor and pop culture icon Rudolph Valentino. George M. Cohan, Spencer Tracy, Perry Como, Irene Dunne, Florence Henderson, Rosiland Russell, Danny Thomas, Bob and Dolores Hope have all worshipped at St. Malachy's.

In 2010 bring your choir to sing at St. Malachy’s Church in New York, where legends are made!