Each year "Gaudeamus" choir invites and warmly welcomes students from foreign countries who come to study to Vilnius University (VU) via exchange programs.

We interviewed two students who came from abroad and joined "Gaudeamus" choir. Felix from Germany came to Lithuania in September 2022 with the Erasmus program. He is studying Philosophy at the Faculty of Philosophy and will spend one year here. Caroline came from the United States of America (Maryland) on an international exchange program and is currently studying international studies, history and Russian language at Vilnius University.

Interview by Paulina Zinkevičiūtė.

How and why did you join the choir? How did you hear about us?

Felix: "After coming here I decided that I wanted to continue singing, because in Germany I study music and attend singing lessons, so I wanted to continue this in Vilnius as well. Coming to the choir was somewhat accidental - the orientation week took place and one of the representatives of the Culture Center presented three University collectives that you can join: "VU Jazz Voices", "Gaudeamus" and "Virgo". During another event, I heard "Virgo" choir singing, then I really knew that I wanted to join the choir, but I couldn't join "Virgo" because it's a women's choir (laughs). I didn't really want to join a jazz group because I'm not a big fan of jazz singing, so I decided to join “Gaudeamus”. Then I found a flyer at the University with information about auditions. When I came to the rehearsal, it turned out I was quite late because I messed up the time, so I apologized, asked if I could still audition, sang and was accepted into the choir!"

Caroline: "My story is very similar. I sang in a choir at high school and also took individual singing lessons. When I was at the US Naval Academy, I sang in the Catholic choir. In recent years, I felt that I didn't have many opportunities to sing, so during the orientation week in Vilnius, someone showed a slide where anyone who wants to sing can fill in their name. I did that and a week later I received an email with an invitation to the rehearsal. When I came, I immediately liked it, so thank you for the very warm welcome!"

Let's talk about music. What did you expect from this choir and what did you find here? Did it meet your expectations, maybe something surprised you?

Felix: "I was hoping to find Lithuanian music, because I have heard that Lithuania has a deep tradition of music and singing, so I wanted to experience it myself. I was also told that we were going to sing W. A. Mozart's "Requiem" and other large pieces. This is exactly what I was looking for and I found it all here, in choir "Gaudeamus".

Caroline: "I love music and singing, but the main reason I joined is that in the lectures I attend majority of students are from abroad. I really like to communicate with them, but when I came to Lithuania, I really wanted to get to know the locals, i.e. Lithuanians. This is exactly what I found in this choir, I met many Lithuanian girls who have already become my friends."

How would you rate the level of the choir? Are you having a hard time here or is it too easy for you?

Felix: "I think the level of the choir is very good. I am always pleasantly surprised at how quickly choristers learn pieces. Sometimes I am surprised that the concerts are announced in a quite short notice, but despite this, the choir always sounds prepared, performs well and at the end I can feel proud of what we have done. That is why I think the level of the choir is really good. For male voices the choir, I believe, is entry-friendly, because there aren't many of them. Everyone in the choir is very friendly and helpful, even if it takes you longer to learn a piece or if you don't understand something, other choristers will definitely help and translate what the conductors are saying."

Caroline: "I would say the level of this choir is very similar to the choirs I sang in before, especially in terms of speed. Everyone is very helpful, helping to learn the parts. Music is wonderful, because even without understanding what the conductor is saying, I can get the gist from the movements, the intonations of the voice and all of this helps me a lot."

We aim to nurture and grow the choir culture at the University, but there are choirs in the world that are forced to end their activities. Do you think it is important for young people to sing in a group, do you see the benefits and importance of it?

Caroline: "This is very important. Not only has music been scientifically proven to help with academic focus, such as math and other subjects, but this kind of social atmosphere is also very beneficial for students. In general, music can help you feel better when nothing else does. There is no better way to learn about another culture than to learn about the local music and also watch other people react to it, so I think singing is very important and people should get more involved in this kind of activity."

Felix: "Caroline mentioned before that for foreign students who do not speak Lithuanian or any local language, this is the easiest way to integrate into a group of musicians or in this case a choir, because the music is a language by itself and you understand what the choristers want, what the conductor wants. Everyone in this choir has very similar goals: to have a good time, to achieve high results in competitions, to perform well in concerts, etc. Therefore, it is very important to socialize and not get lost, especially for a country like Lithuania, which has a very deep singing tradition. When I was in the Museum of Occupations and Freedom Fights, I saw pictures of people holding hands from Vilnius to Tallinn (The Baltic Way). I found it very sensitive and therefore I think it is necessary to maintain and nurture singing traditions in Lithuania."

Photo by Paulina Zinkevičiūtė.