You reached this page through the archive. Click here to return to the archive.

Note: This article is over a year old and information contained in it may no longer be accurate. Please use the contact information in the lower-left corner to verify any information in this article.

A St. Olaf soundtrack in Guyana

By Claire Carlson '12
July 15, 2011

Michael Murchison '10 uses paper notes to teach music to students in Guyana. 

During a five-month stay in Guyana, St. Olaf alumni Michael Murchison '10 and Eric Sayre '10 taught music to more than 450 students ranging in age from five to 80.

The opportunity to teach in this South American nation was first introduced to Sayre during a St. Olaf music education class. The man who started the program, Erv Janssen, came to the class and talked about previous trips that he had led through his Lutheran church in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Knowing only what Janssen conveyed via one PowerPoint presentation and four photos, Sayre knew that he wanted to go. He went back to the dorm room that he shared with Murchison, and within an hour, Murchison decided that he wanted to go as well. Immediately, the pair started making plans for what would be a five-month trip during their first year out of college. They dubbed it the Guyana Music Mission.

Plans and preparation
Murchison and Sayre launched full force into the project with few known variables. All of the previous trips to Guyana had  been monthlong endeavors, so this longer excursion was uncharted territory. As a result, they planned the entire program: developing the curriculum, itineraries, and logistics. "We didn't know what kind of students we would have or what their experience levels would be," says Sayre. "Nothing was set in stone until the week that we got there." 

As it turned out, most of the students had little to no background in music. Sayre and Murchison later found out that there are only 30 music teachers in the entire country, and that all of them are located in the capital city of Georgetown.

Michael Murchison '10 (left) and Eric Sayre '10 (center) with some of the more than 450 students they gave music lessons to in Guyana. Students ranged in age from 5 to 80.

Instruments are also a scarce commodity in Guyana, such that previous teachers had conducted lessons on cardboard "pianos" for lack of the real thing. Unsure of accessibility to anything musical, the duo brought down everything that they might need. They collected donations of money and instruments from St. Olaf alumni and students, along with sheet music and supplies for repairs. In four wooden crates, they shipped 1,400 pounds of materials to Guyana via truck and boat. Included in the shipment were 20 Lutheran hymnals, 19 trumpets, 17 keyboards, 16 guitars, 15 trombones, three baritones, and 56 music stands.

Encountering obstacles
Sayre and Murchison spent their first three weeks in Guyana in New Amsterdam, where they taught without instruments while awaiting the release of their crates from Guyanese customs. Undaunted, the Oles taught expression and emotion in music, steady beat, and groups of beats to their students using an iPod and speakers. At times, Sayre and Murchison were teaching 300 students per week, working with children during the day and adults in the evening. All of the students received singing instruction, and then divided into smaller groups to learn keyboard, guitar, or brass once the instruments arrived. For lack of sufficient teaching space, one of the Oles often taught outside. While the scenery was picturesque, torrential downpours, livestock, and a din of traffic noise made it hard to focus on the music, especially when the age differential between students approached 70 years.

Challenges were softened by a support system back in the United States. Friends and classmates showed interest in their progress, and St. Olaf professors lent their expertise and advice throughout the program. Furthermore, their St. Olaf degrees in music and music education prepared Sayre and Murchison to meet obstacles head on.

Music students in Guyana prepare for a brass lesson in a makeshift classroom outdoors. A lack of sufficient teaching space meant many lessons were held outside.

The education major at St. Olaf requires students to spend at least one Interim teaching off-campus, and Sayre found his exposure to different types of communities in the Twin Cities and Hawaii to be valuable and transferable. "That is what's great about professors in the St. Olaf Education Department," he explains. "They realize that you also need experience off-campus to learn how to teach." 

A vision for the future
Although Murchison and Sayre have only been back in the United States for a few weeks, there are already plans to return to Guyana. "One of the most frustrating aspects of the trip was that there was no way for our students to keep learning once we left," says Sayre.

With this in mind, Sayre started dreaming up a plan to open a permanent music academy in New Amsterdam. He has taken great strides toward achieving this goal, already receiving formal approval and a building from the Lutheran Church of Guyana. If all goes according to plan, Sayre hopes that the academy will open its doors to students in September 2012. The academy would cost about $10 a month per student, a reasonable fee in Guyana. To begin, American teachers would sign up for 10-month teaching stints in Guyana, working with about 150 students per month. Ultimately, Sayre hopes to have Guyanese teachers at the helm of the academy, perhaps even individuals who were once academy students themselves.

"The goal is to make this a sustainable program, and to not be sending music teachers down anymore," he says.

Murchison is less sure about his role in the future of the academy, but places immense value on his experience. "Serving in Guyana has caused me to think a lot about my gifts, passions, and what God may be calling me to now that I am home again," writes Murchison in a trip blog. "I've learned a lot about myself, and I'm eager to discover what's ahead in my life."

Contact Kari VanDerVeen at 507-786-3970 or vanderve@stolaf.edu.