The Central Methodist University Chorale is presenting a solo concert showcasing music they will be singing on their upcoming tour to the Nashville, Tenn., area following Commencement in May.
The concert is Sunday, April 29, at 4 p.m. in Linn Memorial Church on the Fayette campus. All are welcome to attend and there is no fee.
According to conductor Dr. Claude Westfall, CMU associate professor of music and director of choral activities, the concert is segmented into four categories, “Chorale Goes Romantic,” “Chorale Lets Your Ear Relax,” “Chorale Rewind,” and “Chorale Tradition,” which will exhibit a variety of talents shown by the Chorale.
The post-semester tour scheduled in May is the third the Chorale has taken in the last three years, following the trip to Portland, Ore., to sing for the United Methodist General Conference (1916) and the next year’s trip to Washington D.C. where they sang at a variety of sites, including the National Cathedral, Arlington National Cemetery, and the Holocaust Museum.
The repertoire for this year’s tour includes the romantic pieces “Hvalite Godpodne” by Sergei Rachmaninoff; “Nicolete” by Maurice Ravel; “Agnus Dei” by Samuel Barber; and “Sensucht” by Johannes Brahms. The relaxing music contains the folk song “Shenandoah,” as arranged by James Erb.
The rewind covers two pieces that are Chorale favorites from this year, “Memento Creatoris Tui” by Michael Waldenby; and “Abide” by Dan Forrest. The traditional song of the Chorale, dating back to its beginning under Dean Luther T. Spayde in 1932, the conductor of the original A Cappella Choir, is F. Melius Christiansen’s “Beautiful Savior,” which is sung at virtually every concert of the Chorale and is known as its theme song.
The songs chosen for the tour are the ones to be sung at the Chorale’s last concert of the semester on April 29. Better yet, no one has to drive to Nashville in order to hear this concert.