Central Asia, 2003

In April 2003, the Goose left for a two-week musical tour and cultural exchange in Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan on the same day that American troops marched into Baghdad. Representing the United States through traditional song, story and dance during this historic and challenging time was a life-changing and inspirational experience. In each country the Goose rehearsed and performed with local musicians; played at schools and orphanages; offered formal and informal concerts; conducted educational and cultural workshops; held press conferences; performed on television and the radio; and toured and performed in the countryside where American musicians had never been. Playing 52 times over the two-week period, the lasting memory is of the wonderful Central Asian people and musicians and their warm and genuine hospitality.

In 2003, the Goose traveled to Trinidad, Cuba with artists and musicians affiliated with the Brunswick-Trinidad Sister City Association. The group traveled under the auspices of the Archdiocese of Miami, sponsored by the United States Department of Treasury. The group exchanged songs and fellowship with many Cuban musicians and spent much time playing in the streets with the Trinidad-based band Los Pinos. The Goose also performed at an orphanage; a coffee-growing collective community; in churches and restaurants; on buses; at the House of Culture; and in numerous concert halls and venues, indoors and out.

Tajikistan, 2005

In September 2005, the Goose returned again to Central Asia to participate in the “Sound of Heart” international traditional music festival in Dushanbe, Tajikistan. The band formally represented the United States at the festival and played informally with musicians of many nationalities. The Goose also toured and performed in the countryside while driving from Tajikistan to Uzbekistan.

Algeria, 2006

In July 2006, the Goose visited Algeria. They practiced and then performed in the Palais de la Culture with an Algerian band called Es Soundoussia; played at the Maillot Hospital and the Belfort Hospital for Children; performed a kid’s concert at the Village Africain; entertained at the Ambassador’s residence for the traditional Fourth of July celebration; and held press conferences for radio and television broadcasts.

Benin, 2006

In September 2006 the Goose visited Benin, West Africa. They played at Ambassador Brown’s residence; conducted workshops and held public concerts with local musicians in Cotonou; met and played with students at the St. Michel School of Music and the SOS Village Orphanage School; and gave a memorable concert at the Maison de la Culture in Ouidah, the former slave port and Benin’s center of Voodoo, where the lights went out in the entire town on the second song, and the Goose played the rest of the evening by candle light.

Mauritania, 2007

In July 2007 the Goose returned to West Africa to tour in the Sub-Saharan country of Mauritania. They performed for the CARITAS Street Children Center at Dar Naim; for school children at Ecole Diamly at Sebkha; for the opening of the “Window on America” exhibition in Nouakchott; at the Ecole 2 de Medina and a youth center in Rosso (a memorable outdoor concert in 100+ degree heat that started with four police, a boy, and a dog but eventually grew to about a hundred kids who stopped playing soccer to come listen); at the Maison de Jeunes and for Embassy staff with the musical group Diddal Jaalal; at a Youth Center in Kaédi; and with a local group that showcased the traditional dances and songs of the three main ethnic groups living in Kaédi: the Pular, the Soninke, and the Moor. In addition, the Goose conducted radio and television interviews and participated in a speakers’ program for students of American Studies at the National Museum.

Turkmensitan, 2008

Israel & Jordan, 2008

In July 2008 the Goose toured Israel and Jordan.

Performances in Israel included playing in venues such as the Arab-Jewish Community Center in Yaffo; sharing the stage with musicians at the Israeli Folk Club Bikurei Haitim in Tel Aviv; entertaining at the Ambassador’s residence for the Fourth of July celebration; conducting a workshop and performance at Hed College of Music in Tel Aviv; offering a performance at the University High School “Leyada” in Jerusalem; doing another at the Diwan El Lajun Theater, Biladi Center Arara Village; providing a program for Rahat’s Community Center; doing a concert in Nazareth; and calling a backyard country dance at the home of the Public Affairs Officer.

In Jordan the Goose played for school children at King’s Academy in Madaba; at the King Abdullah II Cultural Center in Zarqa; at the Haya Cultural Center in Amman; and at the Palestinian refugee camp in Baqaa. They also rehearsed and performed with the Greater Amman Municipality Oriental Band.

Poland, 2002, 2003, 2005

The group has been fortunate to participate in three musical tours of Poland.

In 2002, they played in at a Children’s Home in Warsaw; an Embassy reception in Lodz; and did concerts in Naleczow, Sandomierz and Warsaw.

In 2003, they participated in “American Days” in Bialystok; performed in Gdansk, at the Higher School of Public Administration’s picnic; at the AmCham picnic in Warsaw; and at the Ambassador’s reception at Branicki Palace. They also had the great pleasure of spending a couple days playing and working with the Borderland Foundation, located in northeast Poland in the town of Sejne. The Borderlands region includes parts of Poland, Lithuania, Belarus and Russia, and the organization was founded with the mandate to build a platform of cooperation and mutual enrichment among multicultural communities. Among these is the rich traditional Jewish culture that Foundation members are renewing through the re-introduction and performance of Klezmer music.

In 2005, the Goose returned to Poland for a series of outdoor concerts. They played at the Osrodk Sportu i Rekreacji (OSiR); an open-air concert in Czluchow; the open-air market in Szczecinek; the amphitheater in Charzykowy; and the amphitheater in Tzcew.