Held at the new Wentz Concert Hall in Naperville, the Holiday concert, "Hearts on Fire" completely sold out for both performances. Audience members braved the cold and snow to experience this wonderful performance filled with lovely poetry and beautiful music. If you missed the concert, click here for a taste of the Chamber Ensemble during dress rehearsal.

The first half of the concert explored repertoire from all ensembles celebrating the various meanings of Anima (breath, life, soul and spirit) and closed with a combined performance of our new signature song Anima! by featured composer Gwyneth Walker. The second half celebrated music of the season with guest artists on brass quartet, percussion and string bass. The program ended with Gwyneth Walker’s Appalachian Carols with all ensembles participating in the rousing Go Tell it On the Mountain.  

What a fantastic way to celebrate the season! 

Laura Blubaugh (1991-1999), Shannon (Doyle) Duarte (1993-2000), Monica Blacconeri (1989-1998), Janelle Hayner (1993-1998), Simrit Patel (1988-1997)

With a number of alums home for the holidays, Laura Blubaugh decided to host a get together to catch up. The night went long, and everyone had such a rousing good time, no one thought to take any pictures! So the picture above is from another event when a group of alums got together.

Whenever the alumni gather you can bet there will be lots of stories and reminiscing about tours, and concerts and exchanging of email addresses and facebook information.

Laura tells us this was so much fun, she will be hosting another get together next year; so if you are interested in attending, let the office know and we will pass on the information. If enough alums are interested, she will arrange for a restaurant! Thank you Laura for helping to keep everyone in touch. 

“A poet begins with delight and ends with wisdom.”  Robert Frost

The poetry of fine choral music is often a testament to this wonderful quote.  That’s certainly the case with the poetry used in this spring’s major commission from Daniel Brewbaker.  The texts come from ancient spiritual sources both eastern and western in origin:  India, Italy, Persia, Germany…from the 8^th to the 17^th centuries. They share a sense of wonder, delight, love of nature, and common human needs of love, faith, hope, and understanding.  This new multi-movement work is giving us all much to chew on and challenging us at every rehearsal, just as significant works always do.  It’s a chance for the Touring chorus to experience a large-scale work, with its different approach to pacing, structure, and overarching themes.  And the opportunity, on May 31^st, to perform it at the Pritzker Pavilion at Millenium Park with world class artists Susanne Mentzer (Mezzo Soprano) and Cynthia Yeh (Principal Percussionist with the CSO), will bring all the hard work to a very gratifying conclusion.  Treble and Concert choruses will join us for the opening of this concert in a performance of our signature song by Gwyneth Walker, and Susanne Mentzer will offer a grouping of art songs as well, accompanied by our own William Buhr. 

Meanwhile, many other events await us this winter and spring, including Treble Chorus’ appearance at a workshop for Kodaly educators, visits to area schools, our annual Honors Chorus SingFest with guest clinician Betty Bertaux, an outreach tour to choirs in Muscatine, Iowa, a visit from the St. Louis Children’s Choir, a trip for Concert Chorus to the Sing-A-Mile-High festival in Denver, and Touring’s appearance at the Somerset Festival in southwest England.  May the harshness of this winter only fuel our desire to warm bodies and souls with great music-making at these and many other events this season.