NATCHITOCHES – The Northwestern State University Chamber Choir and Concert Choir will present their fall concert on Thursday, Oct. 24 at 7:30 p.m. in Magale Recital Hall. Admission is free and open to the public.
Director of Choral Activities Dr. Nicholaus B. Cummins conducts the Chamber Choir. Associate Director of Choral Activities Michael Rorex conducts the Concert Choir.
The Chamber Choir will perform “Alleluia Sancti Henrici” by Jaakko Mäntyjärvi, “Ave Maris Stella” by Trond Kverno, “Aftonen” by Hugo Alfven, “Maya Danser” by Per Nørgard, “Trilo” by Bengt Ollen featuring mezzo-soprano Emily Saldivar of Brownsville, Texas, and “Sakkijarven Polkka” arranged by Jonathan Rathbone, featuring sopranos Amanda Charles of Shreveport and Valentina Herrazo Alvarez of Cartagena, Colombia, and bass Jayvian Bush of Lafayette.
The Concert Choir will perform “A Jubilant Song” by Della Joio, “Rise Up my Love” by Bradley Ellingboe, “Afternoon On a Hill” by Barnum/Millay, “I Want Jesus to Walk with Me” by Ken Berg and “New River Train” by Margaret Vance.
The premier vocal ensemble at NSU, the 36-member Chamber Choir is comprised of the top vocalists at Northwestern State. Each December, the Chamber Choir performs their “Lessons and Carols” service at the Basilica of the Immaculate Conception, which has become a Natchitoches tradition. The ensemble has sung at state ACDA and LMEA conventions, performed by invitation at Carnegie Hall, placed second in the Laurea Mundi Budapest Choral Competition earlier this year. This past summer, the Chamber Choir earned third prize in the Ave Verum International Choral Competition in Baden, Austria. The ensemble also performed in three European capitals at Saint Martin’s Basilica in Prague, Czech Republic, Saint Peter’s Basilica in Vienna, Austria, and Saint Martin’s Cathedral in Bratislava, Slovakia. The Chamber Choir has been selected to perform at the National Collegiate Choral Organization Conference to be held Nov. 7-9 at the University of Maryland.
The Concert Choir is a select, auditioned mixed ensemble of 48 singers that performs traditional and contemporary choral literature. The Concert Choir sings a concert each semester and is the featured choir in the revived holiday tradition of the Community Christmas Carol Sing-along, which is performed with area church choirs.
