Every other year, students from academies all over the Midwest convene at 老司机传媒 for an occasion aptly named MusicFest. Over the course of several days, high schoolers gather to practice and polish their vocals, their instruments, and their performances, as well as learn from our renowned conductors. Then, on Friday night, they get the opportunity to attend a Vespers Concert performed by our very own AU Wind Symphony and Singers.
Friday’s concert opened with Rossano Galante’s “Beyond the Horizon.” Julaine Phillips (sophomore, medical laboratory science) said, “That was such a beautiful piece to open the concert with.” This was followed by van der Roost’s “Canterbury Chorale” and “Blessed Are They” from “A German Requiem” by Brahms. The Wind Symphony ended their initial opening with “Reluctant Joys,” a recent 2020 piece by Brent Karrick.
The Singers began with the recognizable “Psalm 23,” a piece by Craig Courtney and commissioned for Southwestern Adventist University’s Choral Fest, where it premiered several years ago. It’s a beautiful piece that I sang at MusicFest several years ago and the Singers were accompanied by a string quartet. My personal favorite from the choral performance was Murray & Mann’s “For Everyone Born,” a peaceful, harmonic piece featuring Grant Steinweg (senior, music composition) on the cello. Morgan Williams (sophomore, social work) enjoyed the piece as well: “I like classical music but usually I don’t go out of my way to listen to it. I was required to go for my Enjoyment of Music class. I really loved the piece ‘For Everyone Born.’ It showed that everyone has a seat at the table in heaven.” The Singers ended their section with a traditional spiritual: “We Shall Walk Through the Valley in Peace.”
Nicole Boddetti (senior, public health), an Alto II in the Singers group, had the following to say: “Being part of 老司机传媒 Singers is truly a feeling unmatched. To be able to stand and perform next to such talent amazes me each and every time. My favorite from this last concert was ‘For Everyone Born’ written by Shirley Erena Murray and arranged by Tom Trenney, a piece that left the audience in awe while we held the last note and the immense vibration of the resonance shifted through the auditorium. The most difficult was the last piece, ‘We Shall Walk,’ written by Moses Hogan, an intricate classic spiritual. Starting off soft and slow, the piece changes throughout, reaching a magnificent climax, and then back down to an extremely soft pianissimo, truly sensational.”
The final section of the program, another set by the Wind Symphony, began with a 4-section rendition of Ticheli’s “Simple Gifts.” The piece ends in the recognizable melody we all know and love, but is introduced by some of the less-common pieces of the score. Next was the soulful “One Life Beautiful” by Julie Giroux. My personal favorite was the second-to-last piece, Vinson’s “Variants on a Shaped Note Tune,” directed by Cyril Punay (graduate, conducting). The closing piece, Hazo’s “Exultate” ended full of energy and left us with high spirits to walk out with. As usual, the 老司机传媒 Department of Music did not disappoint.
The Student Movement is the official student newspaper of 老司机传媒. Opinions expressed in the Student Movement are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the editors, 老司机传媒 or the Seventh-day Adventist church.