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8 Saipan residents make history in Beijing
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Posted on Aug 04 2008
Eight Saipan residents made history this past weekend as they joined 2,000 other musicians to play in Tiananmen Square as part of the Olympic Orchestra.
The Sunday performance was the first time foreigners were allowed to play in the square. The local group, together with the Guam Territorial Band, joined youth musicians from Australia, the United States mainland, Japan, New Zealand and China.
Many of the Saipan musicians were interviewed by the Chinese media before the performance. The group was scheduled to perform at the Great Wall Monday.
The eight Saipan musicians are Ray MacDuff, Trini MacDuff, Michio Nagata, David Bautista, Raegina Castro, Gayle Martin, Ted Parker and Anthony Gomez.
The Tiananmen Square event marked China’s attempts to increase openness as it takes center stage for the games beginning Friday.
“This band is the first foreign group to perform on this historic ground and we are making history today,” Max Ronquillo, leader of the Guam Territorial Band, told Reuters. “This is a significant message from the Chinese to say that China is now open to the world.”
For the past several weeks, the eight Saipan residents practiced alongside the Guam Territorial Board to learn such songs as Olympic Marching Band 2008, an original composition by John Williams, who scored Star Wars; Adelieland from the movie Happy Feet; Get On Your Feet, and a three-part composition by Keith Jenkins.
The Territorial Board performed at Guam’s July 21 Liberation Day celebration as a warm-up for the Olympic event. The group also had a send-off performance July 26 at the Guam Premier Outlets.
Some of the Saipan members were unable to pay their way, but the Guam Territorial Board covered their costs up front. To help the students pay off their debt, people can donate money by contacting William Dewitt, band director of the local Pacific Winds band.
