The Shepherd University School of Music Community Music Division is pleased to present the Shepherd Community Orchestra, Junior Strings Ensemble, and Youth Chorus in concert at the Frank Arts Center Theater on Wednesday, December 9, at 7:30 p.m.
The Shepherd Preparatory Chorus is directed by Dr. David Gonzol, Associate Professor and Director of Music Education at Shepherd. Assistant conductor for the chorus is Angela Weaver. Included on the program, entitled “Love Conquers All”, are Uno, dos y tres, composed by Rafael Ortiz; Partant pour la Syrie, written by Hortense Eugénie Bonaparte; Sweet and Low: a Lullaby, a poem from The Princess by Alfred, Lord Tennyson, and Christmas Time Is Here, by Vince Guaraldi, which will be accompanied by Shepherd Music Majors on saxophone, bass, and percussion.
The Shepherd Preparatory Chorus membership is comprised of male and female vocalists in grades 3-8, and meets Wednesday evenings throughout the school year at the Frank Arts Center on the Shepherd University campus.
The Shepherd Preparatory Orchestra is under the direction of Dr. Charles Reader, joining us for his premier concert with the ensemble. The orchestra will present a program inspired by the movement of dance and the expression of one’s emotions in times of new beginnings. Repertoire includes Dance of the Tumblers from Rimsky-Korsakov’s opera Snow Maiden, the Elegy for String Orchestra by Elliott Carter, Manuel de Falla’s lively Three Cornered Hat, Suite No, 2; and the first movement of Antonín Dvořák’s famous Symphony No. 9, “From the New World”.
Heralded as one of the best youth orchestras in the region, the Junior String Ensemble and Preparatory Orchestra are comprised of elementary, middle and high school wind and string students from Washington County, Maryland, and Berkeley and Jefferson Counties in West Virginia. The orchestra meets Wednesday evenings for rehearsals and presents two concerts during the school year. Enrollment is open and based on an audition process. Shepherd University Music faculty string coaches for the orchestra are Heather Austin-Stone for violin, Justin Newberger also for violin, Kathy Shrader for viola, and Camilo Perez-Mejía for cello. Wind, percussion, and string students from Shepherd University also participate in the orchestra.
General admission to the Shepherd Preparatory Ensembles concert is $5, free for Shepherd students with Rambler ID.
For more information call 304-876-5555.