Concordia’s Norwegian heritage has opened doors for international travels. The Concordia College Band was the first musical ensemble to travel internationally when they toured Norway in 1935. In June 1933, the band embarked to Chicago for its invited performance at the World’s Fair. The band performed at Soldier’s Field in Chicago on June 18 for an audience of 35,000, fulfilling their intended mission of the trip—to serve as the “official Norway Day band.” Their experience at the Chicago Exposition caught the attention of the Nordmanns-Forbundet (Norsemen’s Federation) who, in 1934, invited the band to travel and tour Norway. The Concordia College Choir first traveled to Norway in 1949. The goal of this tour, as stated in a May 13, 1949 Concordian editorial, was to “help bring about a revitalization of Lutheranism in Norway” and to “serve to bind the Scandinavians in the Northwest in a closer union of mutual understanding and good-will with those in the country of their origin.” Marilyn Nissen, class of 1950 and a member of the 1949 touring choir, echoed these sentiments: “We felt we were on a mission. It was an emotional experience because many of us [choir members] had roots in Norway.” |