CARBONDALE, Ill. — The SIU Choral Union is preparing for a vibrant fall season and looking for interested community members and those on campus to join the festivities.
Rehearsals for the Dec. 5 concert at Southern Illinois University Carbondale start at 7 p.m. Monday, Aug. 28. Rehearsals will be each Monday from 7-9:15 p.m. in Altgeld Hall, Room 110. Susan Davenport, professor and director of choral activities in the School of Music, emphasized that it’s not too late to register and participate.
Registration on Aug. 28 begins at 6:30 p.m. in the hallway outside of the choir room in Altgeld Hall, Room 110. Registration is $30, and music is $20 this semester. The choral union is a non-auditioned group, and they give one performance each semester.
Concert highlights
The choral union’s Dec. 5 concert begins at 7 p.m. in Shryock Auditorium. The primary work will be Italian composer Gian Carlo Menotti’s “Amahl and the Night Visitors,” with the choral union joined by SIU opera students. The concert will include other holiday selections, called “International Carols Suites” by Mark Hayes, with accompaniment by the SIU Orchestra.
“This is a unique opportunity for singers to get to be part of a short opera,” Davenport said. “The choir will serve as the Shepherd’s Chorus in the story. It’s been a number of years since we’ve done a real holiday concert, so some of the music will be somewhat familiar, although the arrangements are new.”
Choral union features variety
Davenport notes the choral union is composed mostly of singers from the community, ranging from high school students to octogenarians.
“The multigenerational layer of the group is one of things I love the most about it,” she said. “There are some SIU students too, and for the performance, the SIU Concert Choir also sings, so the performing ensemble will be both students and community folks.”
For more information on the choral union, email Davenport at sgds@siu.edu.
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