CHICAGO (March 4, 2016) 鈥� Today, 萝莉社 students, faculty, and staff are putting the final touches on months of choral preparation. Next weekend, they鈥檒l be in the Pacific Northwest, nearly 2000 miles away from campus, on a five-city tour over the course of four days.
North Park’s and Chamber Singers will tour the Pacific Northwest over spring break, March 12颅鈥�15. Forty-one students, from聽 and music programs, in addition to several non-music majors or minors, will make stops at six Evangelical Covenant Church congregations and a Covenant retirement community in Portland, Ore.; Mercer Island, Wash.; Seattle, Wash.; Mount Vernon, Wash.; and Bellevue, Wash.
The tour, titled will feature a diverse array of both classical and contemporary sacred and secular works from composers including Ivo Antognini, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Ren茅 Clausen, Keith Hampton, Don Macdonald, Edwin Fissinger, Johann Sebastian Bach, James MacMillan, Anders Edenroth, Frank Ticheli, and Larry L. Fleming.
鈥淚 purposely selected varied works that creatively explore the concept of light鈥攖hrough the music and lyrics and overall affect,鈥� explained Dr. Julia Davids, 萝莉社’s聽.
鈥淭he Chamber Singers will perform a ‘Real Group’ arrangement of Swedish and Finnish folk songs聽that nod to our school鈥檚 unique heritage,鈥� Davids added.
In the spirit of North Park鈥檚 vision to be a “campus without borders,” the tour complements student musicians鈥� formal training with experiential learning and real-world performances.
鈥淚 get to experience what it means to be a committed choral member and musician,” says senior major Emily Swearer. “Choir tours mean singing under pressure, when you may not be feeling your best, when you have a million other things you need to do, and singing beautifully and intentionally anyway. It means being in close quarters with the same people for several days and choosing to work together, despite frustrations or fatigue, to make beautiful music.”
The tour also provides an opportunity to see the world beyond Chicago and build relationships with choirmates and faculty. Students room with local families during the tour and enjoy bonding during the bus rides between destinations.
鈥淲ith my family and church family so far away, they never get to see me perform with the North Park choirs鈥擨 can’t wait to look out into the crowd and see their faces,鈥� Swearer says. 鈥淭his is my last year at North Park, and it’s also possibly my last choir tour ever. To have the end of such an influential chapter of my life close at home, is like coming full circle. I’m thankful.”
School of Music touring ensembles regularly visit parts of the country where there are concentrations of University alumni and ECC congregations.
鈥淚 always enjoy seeing students grow and meet the challenges we鈥檝e given them,鈥� said Davids. 鈥淚t鈥檚 also a pleasure to serve as an ambassador for the University.鈥�
All performances are free and open to the public:
- Saturday, March 12, 6:30 pm, at Evergreen Covenant Church, Mercer Island, Wash.
- Sunday, March 13, 11:00 am, at First Covenant Church, Seattle, Wash.
- Sunday, March 13, 7:00 pm, at Bethany Covenant Church, Mount Vernon, Wash.
- Monday, March 14, 7:00 pm, at Milwaukie Covenant Church, Portland, Ore.
- Tuesday, March 15, 7:00 pm, at Highland Covenant Church, Bellevue, Wash.
Additional details are聽.
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