PHOTO: Ling Guo of Boston Eastern Heritage Chorus. Courtesy Photo
Boston will host an Asian American Day Festival on Sept. 7 on the Boston Common, with numerous events intended to showcase Asian culture, including musical performances.
Ling Guo, conductor of the Newton-based Boston Eastern Heritage Chorus (BEHC), is the artistic director. The Newton Beacon sat down with her to talk about the festival and the chorus.
“It’s an honor,” Guo said.
This is the 14th year of the AADF, which has been held on Boston Common since 2016.
“The purpose is to promote cultural exchange and community collaboration, and the committee and I want to encourage more people to come to this event and enjoy the rich cultural offerings,” she said.
The BEHC, founded in 2000, will perform at the event. Guo started out as its pianist and has been the conductor since 2016. There are about 75 singers, who are mostly not professional musicians, and come from a diverse array of careers. They practice once a week at the Newton Chinese Language School.
What makes them impressive is that despite this, they are a highly accomplished chorus who has performed at numerous events, not only in the Boston area but internationally as well.
This May they performed at the International Choir Festival of Tuscany. In 2012, they won Gold Prize at the World Choral Festival in Vienna. They have won other awards at festivals in Quebec and in China.
There is an audition process, but it’s not particularly strict.
“Our members are all different levels. It’s not easy to put them together,” Guo said.
But they all share a love of their culture and singing.
“I enjoy being with the group and helping the people,” Guo continued. “I have a background in music, so I can help the people who don’t. We can work together to accomplish the same goal—to spread Chinese music.”
Guo studied at the Beijing Dance Academy, the Beijing Central School of Music, and the Longy School of Music in Cambridge. She also previously taught at the Hunan Normal University Conservatory of Music.
While primarily performing traditional and folk Chinese music, the BEHC sometimes learns pieces in other languages.
“We want to learn many beautiful songs. We learned ‘You Raise Me Up’,” Guo said said, which they performed at Cary Hall in Lexington last year.
They’ve also learned some songs in Italian.
The chorus is a highly meaningful activity to its participants, most of whom are immigrants.
“Music is the common language of humankind and singing is our common hobby. Chorus signing brings us joy, let us overcome tiredness, and makes us new friends,” the BEHC says on its website.
Practice is held Sunday afternoon from 3:30 pm to 5 pm at F.A. Day Middle School at 21 Minot Place, and all who are interested in Chinese singing are welcome.