Stanford Concert Tours

Since 2004, American-Thai Foundation and Yonok Foundation have had the pleasure and honor of hosting and organizing several Thailand concert tours of outstanding student ensembles from Stanford University.  In 2015, we hosted the outstanding Lagunita String Quartet, and we most recently hosted the 2017 Thailand Tour with the Stanford Chamber Chorale and Stanford Taiko -- click here to view videos from the tour.  

In the summer of 2013, we hosted and organized the Thailand tour of the renowned Stanford Chamber Chorale and Stanford Taiko, led by Stephen M. Sano, Chair of the Music Department at Stanford University.  The tour was presented as a tribute to His Majesty the King and as a celebration of 180 years of Thai-U.S. relations (the longest in Asia) and the 25th anniversary of Yonok Foundation.  This marked Stanford Taiko's fourth tour of Thailand and Chamber Chorale's first.  Featured in the tour repertoire was a specially commissioned song, "Hav Gengr Hrioum" (The Storm Driven Sea) to pay tribute to His Majesty the King, by multiple Grammy Award-winning composer and Stanford Taiko alumnus Christopher Tin.  Also included were beautiful renditions of The Royal Anthem and the royal composition Sai Fon, specially arranged for the tour by Chamber Chorale member Eric Tuan.

The tour premiered in Bangkok, with concerts at the Siam Society Under Royal Patronage, Aksra Theatre, and Central World, and also included a visit to Sirirat Hospital to sing the royal composition "Sai Fon" in honor of the king and queen.  The ensembles then traveled to Pattaya, Sukhothai, Lampang, Chiang Mai, and Chiang Rai, delighting audiences with their beautiful songs, rousing drum music, and stunning choreography.  In between performances, the ensembles had rich opportunities to experience Thailand, visiting historic and cultural sites, sampling various regional cuisines of the country, meeting and exchanging culture with locals, and of course partaking in some shopping and Thai massage--a few students even learned to speak, read, and write Thai!  The performances and activities in between were covered extensively by the Thai media, including television, print, radio, and social media.  We were also delighted to have our newly arrived Teach Thailand Corps 2013-14 teachers, volunteers, and fellows join us for portions of the tour.

We would like to thank Stephen Sano and his team, Stanford Taiko, and Stanford Chamber Chorale for allowing audiences in Thailand to experience the joy of their music.  We thank Dr. Supachai Panitchpakdi, Secretary General of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development, and Khun Tarrin Nimmanahaeminda, former Minister of Finance, for their patronage as guests of honor of our tour.  We thank United States Ambassador Kristie Kenney and her staff for their enthusiastic support of the tour and for inviting the ensembles to perform at the Independence Day reception at the Consulate General in Chiang Mai.  

Generous support was provided by our sponsors: Siam Cement Group; Siam Commercial Bank; Bangkok Hospital; PTT Group; TrueVisions and TNN24; Bangkok Post; Central Pattana; Dusit International; Bangkok Airways; and Nation University.  We are grateful to the the Yonok Foundation staff, who worked tirelessly to bring together the tour's complex logistics.  We thank audience members throughout Thailand who came out to be a part of this most memorable and meaningful tour.

Below are selected photographs from the tour.

In addition, videos of performances from the tour can be viewed via this link.