To Songs of Hope directors, Jeanne Junge and Tom Surprenant, the score is now COVID – 2, Songs of Hope – 29.

“2020 and 2021 were really hard on us, but we kept reminding ourselves that we had a long run of great years,” Surprenant said. “A final score of 29 good years to two empty ones isn’t bad. Thinking about the good years really kept us going.”

After two summers with its doors closed by the pandemic, the global music project is once again bringing a stage full of youthful singers to New Ulm, with a free concert at the State Street Theatre at 7 p.m. Monday, July 18.

“We’re so ready to be back,” affirms Junge.

When the first COVID lockdowns hit Minnesota in March of 2020, Junge and Surprenant knew the effects overseas would be just as hard on them. And sure enough, travel from other countries into the United States quickly became impossible. Which meant the organization’s international performance project wasn’t going to happen until things got better.

“It was a tough time for us,” recalls Surprenant, SOH’s program director. “Creating concerts with youthful performers from other countries wasn’t just a slice of our work. It was our reason for existing. Cutting us off from our overseas performers was like telling a school you’re going to have to teach without students.”

“We did manage to find other ways to make music,” says Junge, artistic director. “Like organizing remote music videos with singers in other countries. As a substitute project, it was challenging and interesting, but mostly, we kept waiting and hoping for the world to get back to normal.”

“At least normal enough for us to have live concerts again,” added Surprenant.

It took three years from the last project in 2019 for a new one to happen in 2022. But with prudent management, and more than a few financial challenges, Sounds of Hope was able to stay alive, and now the organization is ready for a brand-new season of concerts.

This has meant working around pandemic obstacles that just won’t let go. China, for example, has been a frequent source for SOH performers, but for many months a nationwide lockdown has gripped it. In other countries, the pandemic still makes families reluctant to send their children and young adults to Minnesota.

“We knew there were going to be challenges,” Junge said. “But if we had any chance of getting kids to Minnesota, and if concert venues reopened for us, we wanted to be ready. And when it became possible, we moved fast.”

The new Songs of Hope concert revives a longtime tradition. The first Songs of Hope took place in 1991, and in the ensuing thirty-one years, Songs of Hope has performed in more than 70 cities throughout Minnesota, with hundreds of global performers, mostly aged 10 to 16, bringing their talents to state audiences. The new project will be similarly global in scope, showcasing the talents of young artists coming to Minnesota from Finland, Germany, England, Italy, Guatemala, Mexico, Jamaica, Turkey, Israel, and the USA.

“In these uncertain times, getting young people on stage from nine countries is truly an accomplishment,” Surprenant said. “It wasn’t easy, but we persevered and now we’re ready to bring a great show to Minnesotans.”

Over the years, the project has earned a well-deserved reputation for lively, upbeat shows. The project’s newest installment promises to live up to this reputation. With shows scheduled in more than a dozen cities, the concert will offer a delightful mix of international songs from all the countries of the performers. Blended with the global music will be a wide variety of U.S. songs chosen to entertain, educate, and inspire.

“For the U.S. music, we always include a couple of songs with timely messages,” Junge said. “We thought the effects the pandemic on our sense of community would be an appropriate subject. But then Ukraine happened. We always ask ourselves what young people around the worldwide are thinking and feeling.”

“Songs of Hope began in the same year Iraq invaded Kuwait,” Surprenant said. “Sadly, there have been too many years with wars. Young people are smart and they know what’s going on. It helps all of us to express our feelings through music, and to affirm our hopes for better times.”

Both Junge and Surprenant are quick to point out how much the performers want to sing about things that matter to them, and to the adults in their world. And the best music is able to put a human face on their feelings.

In addition to covering serious themes, Junge and Surprenant plan to offer up some fun. “It’s summer, after all [laughs],” Junge said, “and this concert is by kids for kids of all ages. We all want to have fun, right? So don’t be surprised if there’s a silly song or two.”

The Songs of Hope tour in 2022 is happening thanks in part to an Arts Tour Grant from the Minnesota State Arts Board, through a legislative appropriation from the arts and cultural heritage fund.

“We prefer going to cities with smaller populations, around 2,000 to 5,000,” Junge said. “With Arts Board funding, we have a chance to bring our global kids to a different slice of Minnesota.”