Coaler musicians on a west coast adventure

By: 
STAFF REPORT

     Vocal and instrumental music students from Coal City High School are in California this week for a four-day performance tour.
    The 56-member tour group departed Monday morning on a 3.5-hour flight to Los Angles. They are due back in Coal City early Friday morning.
    Upon landing in Los Angles the group headed out on a guided tour of the coast with stops at Marina Del Mar, Venice Beach and Santa Monica Pier, where the students spent an evening enjoying the beach.
    As the sun rose on day two, the tour group was up early for a VIP tour of Warner Brothers Studio. By mid-day, the students were enjoying the Original Farmers Market and The Grove, two of the city’s must-see destinations. The CCHS band and choirs performed at the Original Farmers Market for those visiting the site.
    When the performance concluded the group headed to the famed Hollywood Bowl and Museum. For more than 100 years, the Hollywood Bowl has played a major role in music and entertainment, helping to shape the careers of some of the most famous performers of the 20th and 21st centuries.
    The group then headed to the Hollywood Walk of Fame, viewed the Hollywood sign and walked the path actors take to the Academy Awards.
    To finish out the day, the group took in Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Tony Award winning musical, “Cinderella.”
    On Day three the group headed to Universal Studios Hollywood where the band and chorus performed for park guests.
    The final day of the trip was set aside for students and chaperones to tour the city with several stops at iconic and thrilling locations including OUE Skyspace and Skyslide.
    The music department provides performance tours for students every other year. In 2016, a group traveled to Nashville, Tennessee and in 2014 band and choral students performed in New York City.
    The trip was organized by vocal music director Bonnie McDowell and Cameron Kotovsky, director of bands. Students covered their travel expensed through fundraisers and personal funds.