Ten days and nights of exhilarating music making — such was WomenSing’s experience in July when the chorus went on a concert tour to Barcelona, Spain, followed by participation in the 25th Annual International Music Festival of Cantonigros in the foothills of the Pyrenees. “WomenSing rose to a new level of artistry for this trip,” said Artistic Director Martín Benvenuto, “The gains were immeasurable.”

The chorus performed in two extraordinary venues: the monastery of Sant Pere de Rodes, clinging to a mountainside at the edge of the Mediterranean Sea, and the Santa Maria del Pi church in Barcelona. Sant Pere, now a museum, was a monastery for 900 years. Here WomenSing was invited to perform the opening concert for the 7th Annual Festival of Music of Sant Pere de Rodes. In the church columns, arches, and blocks of sparsely adorned stone tower high overhead, creating a sublime acoustic chamber. “I will not forget the exquisite sounds that I heard at the monastery and the confidence and boldness that I felt in the singing at Santa Maria,” said Benvenuto.

WomenSing performs at the Cantonigros Festival at the base of the Pyrenees.

The beauty of Barcelona captivated singer Gloria Kubitschek. “It was gorgeous,” she said, “combining the old and the new in architecture and art” into a seamless blend. She likened it to WomenSing’s repertoire that includes the classics as well as the contemporary, marrying the old with the new, each enhancing the other. Participation in the 25th International Festival of Music in Cantonigros was the heart of the trip. The small village of some 200 residents in the foothills of the Pyrenees hosted hundreds of people from around the world, coming together in song and dance. The road leading to Cantonigros was lined with poles bearing the flags of the nations represented. As the only group from the United States, the Stars and Stripes flew for WomenSing. Thirty other countries were represented, with participants coming from such far away places as New Zealand, Taiwan, Ghana, Nepal, Norway,Venezuela, Russia, and Indonesia.

Soprano Kristan Torres noted that at the festival, WomenSing performed to an audience composed largely of experienced singers, different from those at home that include family and friends. Here she sensed a need to prove herself. The audience is an unknown; you don’t know how they’re going to respond, she said. The chorus received several standing ovations.

“We were solid, confident, willing to take risks, and performed well under pressure,” said Benvenuto, who appreciated the opportunity to hear choirs from all over the world. It was an exhilarating 10 days — days that will not be forgotten.

Singers come upon promotional posters for their concert in a shop in Barcelona.