One evening per month, it is like I go back to Sweden. It is when the Swedish Song Group of Washington meets and practice. The group gathers in the house of the choir’s musical leader, little outside DC, and when I enter her house, it is like I walk into a Swedish home. The furniture, wallpapers, fabrics, and decorations all remind me of Sweden. I think we are around 20 Swedes and Swedish-Americans that meet to sing and socialize. I and a few others are the “newcomers”, whereas most have been here long enough to have adult American children or even grandchildren. We sing at Swedish events a few times per year and it is always fun. What I like the most about singing with this group though is that I learn Swedish songs that I didn’t know before, from traditional folk music to modern compositions. I guess keeping a bit of where we come from becomes more important the longer we stay abroad, and since singing is such an important part of my life, I am very happy that I found this group and get to know all this music. This evening we have this month’s practice and I can’t wait for the workday to be over so that I get to go to Sweden again for a few hours!

From a couple of our performances around Washington DC: