Songs of Hope playing Saturday

For the first time in its 28-year history, the global Songs of Hope company will be performing in Cloquet, presenting an afternoon concert at the Encore Performing Arts Center 2-3:30 p.m. Saturday, July 20.

The award-winning Songs of Hope concert showcases the talents of young artists ranging in age from 9 to 21 coming to Minnesota from countries all across the globe, including Vietnam, China, Germany, Italy, England, Finland, Turkey, Jamaica, Guatemala and the USA. Audiences of all ages are welcome to come enjoy the high-energy, free concert.

The Songs of Hope concert tour takes place every summer, and over the years the project has

earned a well-deserved reputation for lively, upbeat shows. With close to 90 youth and adults on stage, the company will present a delightful mix of international songs from all the performers’ countries. Mixed with the global music will be a wide variety of songs from the United States.

“For the U.S. music, we’re focusing somewhat on songs with timely messages,” says artistic

director Jeanne Junge. “One of the themes we’re exploring is about a world grappling with issues of immigration and how to meet the needs of refugees and others in search of a better life.”

Adds program director Tom Surprenant, “There have always been refugees and immigrants in the United States, so this is not a new issue, but suddenly it’s a hot issue again. For our audiences, we have some songs from our past and present that explore the subject in different ways.”

In addition to covering serious themes, Junge and Surprenant certainly plan to offer up some fun.

“It’s summer, after all,” laughs Surprenant, “and this is a concert for kids of all ages. We all know

Minnesota audiences like to have fun, right? So be ready when we start singing