This week, while the rest of the town shivers in the freezing winds of Massachusetts, 89 of its residents are traveling down the east coast of Spain, soaking up the sun in the 60-degree weather. 

However, “It’s not just a sight-seeing tour — this is a performance tour,” said Dean Marshall, a Canadian composer who has been working with the Dartmouth High School Orchestra as they prepared for their trip abroad.

Marshall’s professional troupe, Barrage, traveled 27 countries performing over 3,000 concerts in a 16-year period before he decided it was time to “bring the next generation.”

He emphasized the importance of this experience for young musicians, adding it’s about “making that musical connection with people on the other side of the ocean that have the same drive and same passion about music. That’s what really excites us.”

Leaving Sunday, Feb. 16, the 50 students, 10 chaperones, four staff and 25 friends and family hit Barcelona first where the ensemble played the first of three performances that will span their trip.The orchestra’s last international trip with Marshall took place right before the Covid pandemic when the kids took on Scotland. 

At each location, the students will work with other international students. Michael Daniels, the orchestra’s low strings specialist, noted how many of the Dartmouth kids have been practicing their Spanish over the language-learning app Duolingo, hosting friendly competitions to see who will get the highest score. 

Ahead of the trip, the orchestra had a concert at the high school, sharing pieces they planned to play abroad, which included introductions to the pieces in both English and Spanish. 

Daniels said the students have been focusing recently on style and emotion while performing — “taking the music out off the page and into our souls and beings” and communicating that to the audience.

Seniors Mohamad Hijazi and Will Jordan, who have both been playing the cello together since the fifth grade, shared their excitement for the trip prior to the show. 

Jordan said, in his time in the program, the music has been fun, “but I think what really sets it apart from everything else is the connections we make within music.” These connections are what he and Hijazi are most looking forward to in Spain. 

“Not only do we get to go abroad and showcase our skills … but we get to build much deeper connections than you can ever build in a school,” he added.

Hijazi noted those connections aren’t just with the students either. Both shared how grateful they were for their relationship with Orchestra Director Heather Church and Daniels as well as for the support of the administration in making trips like these happen.

Church said 20 years ago, when she first began teaching at Dartmouth, the school had international trips every two years, but due to costs, this has been changed to every four years. An additional domestic trip also happens every four years. 

“The reason why I do this is because when I was 20, I spent my junior year abroad in England and I got to travel over there and it just absolutely changed me as a person,” she said.

She emphasized the importance of having these experiences and said she hopes to inspire a greater appreciation for other cultures in her students.

“I truly feel like I have the best — quote, unquote — job in the world,” Church said, adding how her students are always excited to learn and show a genuine desire to want to be in the classroom.

Marshall said, “I knew the quality of the program and knew they’re all about energizing the kids and getting them excited, not just technically, but as a whole human being. They really care about their students and it’s so awesome.”

He added, “The Dartmouth community should know, these directors that you have are pretty special.”