Photo by Phil Thompson

Girard High School alumnus Tim Parenti, performs at the Heinz Chapel Choir's spring concert in Pittsburgh on April 19. He will be blogging daily as the choir tours China and Hong Kong in the coming weeks.

Tim Parenti, 21, a 2006 alumnus of Girard High School and student at the University of Pittsburgh, is touring China with the Heinz Chapel Choir as part of its "Great Wall Tour."

The group, led by director John Goldsmith, embarked on the fifteen-day tour of China and Hong Kong on April 28 and will return to the States on May 12. Though the choir tours internationally every three years, this marks its first visit to Asia.

The tour will stop in Beijing, Xi'an, Hangzhou, Suzhou, Shanghai, and Hong Kong. The choir, known for its diverse a cappella repertoire, will perform at several prominent music schools along the way, including Beijing's Central Conservatory of Music, Xi'an Conservatory of Music, Zhejiang University in Hangzhou, and Shanghai Conservatory of Music.

Along with the performances, the tour will provide opportunities in each city for the students to see many of China's most famous landmarks and to learn about Chinese culture and traditions first-hand.

Parenti will be making regular posts about these cultural experiences and the choir's adventures to the Pitt Music Department blog at www.music.pitt.edu/blog, as well as to his personal blog at blog.timparenti.com. He plans to include many photos and stories, so that state-side fans can follow the students and experience a taste of life in China.

The Heinz Chapel Choir, founded in 1938, is an auditioned a cappella ensemble made up of students at the University of Pittsburgh. Its fifty-five members represent some thirty-six different fields of study.

For more information on the choir, please visit www.pitt.edu/~heinzcc.