March 01, 2012
Choir to present ‘Day and Night’ concert
CARBONDALE, Ill. -- The Southern Illinois University Carbondale Concert Choir offers a preview of the concert it will present at the American Choral Directors Association (ACDA) Regional Conference.
The preview concert begins at 7 p.m. on Sunday, March 4, at St. Francis Xavier Church on Poplar Street in Carbondale.
The program selections cross a wide swath of time, with music from the Renaissance through modern times, including contemporary composers. Choir conductor Susan Davenport said the program the choir will present is called “Day and Night,” with the two segments of the performance highlighting those two concepts. The choir will also premier a song by composer Chen Yi.
The ACDA conference is in Fort Wayne, Ind., March 7-10. The SIU Carbondale Concert Choir has the final performance, a position Davenport considers an honor. The ensemble will perform at Fort Wayne’s First Presbyterian Church at 10:45 a.m., following the Cincinnati Children’s Choir.
Davenport explained that the choir received its invitation to perform at the conference based on an audition recording. This recording, she said, required the ensemble to send samples of performances from a period of recent years. This ensures, she said, that the selected choirs maintain traditions of musical excellence rather than capitalizing on a single good year. SIU Carbondale has a strong tradition of public performance, including appearances at Carnegie Hall and a cultural tour of China.
Chen Yi, the composer whose work the choir will debut, is a Distinguished Professor at the University of Missouri-Kansas City. She holds a Charles Ives Living Award from the American Academy of Arts and Letters, and past fellowships from such prestigious institutions as the Guggenheim and the National Endowment for the Arts.
The choir’s accompanist is Lee Yun Xim, a graduate student from Singapore.
Members of the SIU Carbondale Concert Choir, listed by hometown, are:
ILLINOIS
Albion
Nick Lambert, bass, theater senior
Alton
Adrienne Stockley, choral conducting graduate student
Aurora
Anna Luxion, soprano, music theory and composition junior
Benton
Josh Kimball, tenor, musical theater sophomore
Brownstown
Kameron Kilzer, soprano, music education sophomore
Carbondale
David Dillard, bass, assistant professor of voice; Tannaz Pourboghrat, soprano 2/alto 1, musical theater freshman
Carterville
Austin Clark, bass, choral conducting graduate; Rachel Dunning, soprano 2/alto 1, musical theater freshman
Centralia
Morgan Isaiah, alto, vocal performance senior
Chester
Andrew Smith, bass, music business senior
Chicago
Tanya DeLeon, soprano, musical theater junior; James Richardson, bass, music business senior
Harrisburg
Laila Abdo, alto, biology and liberal arts music junior
Harvard
Ivan Matias, tenor, music theory and composition sophomore
Herrin
Drake Caraker, tenor 2/baritone, music business senior; Allison Spiller, alto, music education junior
Highland
Andrew Copeland, tenor 2/baritone, vocal performance freshman
McLeansboro
Rachel Brashier, alto, music history and literature graduate student
Monticello
Hannah Sinclair, soprano, liberal arts music sophomore
Murphysboro
Leah Clark, soprano 2/alto 1, liberal arts music and sociology senior
Paris
Nathan Staub, bass, music education senior
Shelbyville
Jeremy Holmes, tenor, music education senior
Sparta
Ellis Henley, tenor 2/baritone, music education junior
St. Charles
Monica Bertrand, soprano, music education senior
St. Jacob
Laura Neal, alto, vocal performance graduate student
Troy
Spencer Rumsey, alto, English education freshman
Villa Grove
Rebecca Carmack, soprano 2/alto 1, music theory and composition senior
Willow Springs
Nick Covey, tenor 2/baritone, music education junior
Yorkville
Carlyn Zimmerman, soprano 2/alto 1, assistant conductor
KENTUCKY
La Grange
Chris Probus, tenor 2/baritone, vocal performance graduate student
Lexington
Madalyn Mentor, soprano, vocal performance graduate student
Paducah
Elizabeth Meyers, soprano, vocal performance junior
MINNESOTA
Minneapolis
Robert Graham, tenor, vocal performance and choral conducting graduate student
MISSOURI
St. Louis
Nick Cistola, tenor, music theory and composition sophomore
TEXAS
Fort Worth
Marla Schultz, alto, musical theater freshman
Houston
Sarah Cole, soprano 2/alto 1, alto, musical theater freshman