Graduates in the Cornell University Chorus and Glee Club won't have much time to dwell on their accomplishments. On Memorial Day, May 28 – the day after Cornell Commencement – the Glee Club and Chorus will hop a 5 p.m. flight from New York to Caracas, Venezuela, for an unprecedented 10-day concert tour.

"It's going to be a little hectic," said senior Ryan Scarsfield, Glee Club tour coordinator, who graduates May 27. "But we're all very excited about performing our music in Venezuela, as well as collaborating with Venezuelan ensembles. It should be pretty spectacular"

It's a first for both groups, Sarsfield said. The Cornell Glee Club, originally formed in 1868, has toured widely during its history, including trips to Asia, Mexico and the Soviet Union. The all-male group has never been to South America. The all-female Chorus, formed 78 years ago, took its first international trip in May 1998 for a weeklong concert tour in Taiwan.

Chorus member junior Sara Troyani is largely responsible for the idea of a trip to Venezuela. Troyani, who will return from studies in Rome for the trip, has family in Venezuela and helped arrange contacts.

One of the major highlights in a trip full of high points is a June 2 performance of Bach's B Minor Mass with the Orquesta Sinfónica Gran Marsical de Ayacucho, a national orchestra of Venezuela, in its premier concert hall, the Teatro Teresa Carreño in Caracas. The Chorus and Glee Club recently performed the Bach mass with the Syracuse Symphony to superlative reviews. Most of the concert repertoire will be in English, but Sarsfield said some Venezuelan folk sings will be included.

Tourist activities are at a premium in the exhausting and tight itinerary. Chorus and Glee Club members arrive in Caracas at about 10 p.m. Monday and leave at 7:30 a.m. Tuesday morning for Puerto La Cruz, two hours away on the Caribbean coast, to prepare for a 6 p.m. concert.

But there is a little wiggle room. For instance, this item on performers' Tuesday schedule: "Return to hotel after concert and hit the town." And this item on Wednesday's agenda, following a performance at a local high school: "... change into swimming clothes ... travel to two beaches, 1 to 4 p.m." But choristers will have to towel off quickly for an evening concert at the headquarters of the Venezuelan State Petroleum Co. that night.

The tour also includes a daylong bus ride June 3 into the Andes mountain city of Mérida for a performance at the Centro Cultural de Mérida. There choristers will adjust to the rarified atmosphere with a sample of the local trout ice cream and a trip to markets, museums and plaza. The group returns to Caracas June 6, and flies back to New York June 7 by way of Puerto Rico. Back home, there's no rest for the weary choristers as they are set to perform for Cornell's Reunion Weekend festivities. Sarsfield said members will be eager to "share their music and their stories of the trip" during a post-tour concert at Sage Chapel on the Cornell campus, Friday, June 8.

For more information, contact Sarsfield at the Glee Club office, (607) 255-3396.