We began the day with a bus tour of Montevideo and discovered how beautiful the city along the water really is. We rode along the “rambla,” which describes any road along the water. It certainly reminded us of home and Lake Shore Drive (except Chicago needs a few palm trees). We learned that Montevideo has over 400 statues and monuments. During the tour, we stopped to view some of these important historical sites and enjoyed the view of the city from the coast. After lunch and shopping in the Old City of Montevideo this afternoon, we had a great farewell dinner. The kids then celebrated at the hotel in a ballroom with music, snacks and dancing. It was a great way to celebrate their musical achievements and a fantastic South American tour!

Here are some more thoughts from our students on their favorite parts of this tour.

“What a fantastic culture we are in. The old buildings, the dancing, the food, the music! But the more I think about how much fu ... Read More »

Hello from Montevideo on our last night of the CYSO South American Tour! We have had some internet trouble, but we’re back online. So, we’re excited to fill you in on our last day and a half of adventures.

We held an open rehearsal yesterday morning with the Orquesta Sinfonica Jose Artigas (the Uruguayan youth orchestra) and music students from across the country. We were so happy to see Teatro Solis packed with 800 children for this unique experience!

Some of the Uruguyan students traveled over an hour to see orchestral instrum ... Read More »

This morning, after making the four hour trek back to Buenos Aires from Rosario, we got the chance to experience a South American Buquebus (boo-kay-boos). We rode the large ferry across the Río Plata for three hours before arriving at Montevideo. The airport-like experience of riding the Buquebus was interesting indeed.

After checking in at our hotel, we were taken to our first Uruguayan meal at a nice restaurant in the Old City of Montevideo. We walked a very quaint pedestrian shopping area to get there. It was delicious, as the majority of our South American meals have been. We are all very excited to explore the city of Montevideo more tomorrow afternoon.

In the morning, the kids have an early rehearsal at Teatro Solis to get ready for the final concert of the tour tomorrow night. We drove past the beautiful theater on our way to dinner and are looking forward to seeing the inside! The kids will have the opportunity to meet with some young mus ... Read More »

Today was a sunny, brisk winter day in Rosario. We all enjoyed having free time this morning to explore the city and do some shopping. The kids then had a rehearsal this afternoon in Teatro el Circulo to prepare for the big concert.

Tonight's program of Brahms, Hanson and Dvorak did not fail to impress the Rosario crowd that filled each seat from the main floor to the third balcony of Teatro el Circulo! The audience was again wowed by our talented students and was even treated to two encores. We are so proud of their accomplishments and the way they have represented classical music and American youth here in Argentina.


Early in the morning, we are headed back to Buenos Aires by bus. Once there, we will board a ferry to Uruguay and then make our way to Montevideo, our final stop on this South American Tour. We're off to bed before ... Read More »

Today was our first day in Rosario. We visited the Monumento a la Bandera (Monument to the Argentine flag). It was actually Flag Day this past Saturday in Argentina, so we got the opportunity to see many of the Argentine flags flying. It was a beautiful day as we walked by the Paraná River. We got the chance to visit the Rosario Cathedral, and we saw the suspended bridge that connects Rosario to Victoria, the city across the river on the delta.

We were even joinied by some friendly stray dogs that met us at the bus and accompanied us the whole morning. They stood in the middle of the street and barked to stop traffic so we could cross the street. We were sad that we weren't able to bring them back on th ... Read More »

We have arrived safely in Rosario, Argentina! Our day started with an antique market in Buenos Aires this morning. We then decided to take advantage of the long bus ride by asking our students for their thoughts on their favorite part of the tour so far. Here is what some of them said...

"I love the totally different culture and the experience of trying to find your way around with only Spanish. Now I am glad I had to take Spanish in middle school! The audiences are so welcoming and fun, I wish we could perform down here more often. I am so glad we have this amazing opportunity to visit South America!"
- Danny Taubenheim, trumpet

"I really enjoyed the flea market today. There was something for everyone! I also love the beef."
- Michael Rau, violin

"Turning a corner outside of La Facultad de Derecho to find audience members whistling themes from the pieces we performed. Knowing th ... Read More »

Tonight was the second concert of our South American tour in La Facultad de Derecho. We are very proud to say that our Symphony Orchestra students played to a sold out auditorium at the University of Buenos Aires! The Argentine crowd was truly impressed by the program of Strauss' Till Eulenspiegels Lustige Streiche, Gershwin's An American in Paris, and Dvorak's "New World Symphony".


The crowd was so awestruck, in fact, that they jumped to their feet at the end of the Dvorak piece and shouted "Bravo!" as they gave our students a well des ... Read More »

We've just returned from our trip to La Plata, Argentina, where we made many friends and were welcomed with open arms. After an hour bus ride to the south of Buenos Aires, we went on a short sight-seeing tour of La Plata. Our tour included a stop at the very impressive Catedral de La Plata, which is located in the geographical center of the city, facing the central square, Plaza Moreno, and the City Hall.


After the tour and some lunch, we headed to the Teatro Coliseo Podesto for rehearsal.

Though we have learned that Argentina earned its reputation for being a great place to get delicious beef, ton ... Read More »

After another successful rehearsal of Brahms, Hanson and our encores this afternoon, we are feeling very confident that the concert tomorrow in La Plata will wow our first audience!


After rehearsal, we headed to a different part of Buenos Aires for dinner and a tango show at La Esquina de Carlos Gardel. We dined late in the evening in true Argentine fashion, while celebrating the history of the tango dance. The show we saw was named after Carlos Gardel, the father of tango. We were taken through the fascinating history of tango, starting years ago and moving into more modern and ... Read More »

Hola! Our second day in Buenos Aires has been quite an adventure so far... and there is more to come!

This morning, after a night of much needed rest, we headed outside of Buenos Aires to an Estancia. We were greeted by five gauchos (cowboys) and were treated to a "horse version of SeaWorld".

The gauchos paraded and grouped their beautiful horses into separate herds based on color. They then impressed us with what seemed to be a gaucho version of jousting practice. They picked tiny hanging rings off the end of ropes with what looked like pencils as they galloped quickly past o ... Read More »