Release Date: October 15, 2009
Kennesaw State University hosts Male Chorus Day concert
For media inquiries: Cheryl Anderson Brown, Director of Public Relations,
770-499-3417 or cbrown@kennesaw.edu
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KSU Male Chorus Day concert |
KENNESAW, Ga.—On Oct. 27, Kennesaw State University will present its annual Male Chorus Day concert at 7:30 p.m. in the Performance Hall of the Dr. Bobbie Bailey & Family Performance Center. Leslie Blackwell, director of choral activities at KSU, hosts the event to showcase the voices of male high school students from the area.
“The concert allows the young men to sing good choral literature since they don’t always have the opportunity to sing in this capacity,” says Blackwell. “It is an educational tool, as well as a professional service tool.” During a one-day workshop to prepare for the evening’s performance, the young men learned three varying musical pieces as well as vocal technique.
The concert will open with “Morning Trumpet,” an American hymn by arranger and composer Mack Wilberg, who is the music director of the Mormon Tabernacle Choir. “Morning Trumpet” is an a capella song that features accented rhythms and percussive vocal lines, creating the feel of a march, for an inspirational and powerful effect.
“Hold On,” the second piece of the concert, is a traditional spiritual arranged by Uzee Brown, professor of music and chair of the music department at Morehouse College. This piece uses the metaphor of keeping a hand on the plow as a symbol of clinging to the gospel. Lastly, the male chorus will indulge the audience with a Latin American piece, Salmo 150, by composer Ernani Aguiar. This piece is popular for its format that features one voice singing the melody to rhythmic choral accompaniment by the other voices.
Blackwell describes the male voice as “powerful.” “The sound of a male chorus is strictly unique and it needs to be heard.” The male chorus has grown considerably from 75 students since its conception five years ago to 190 students today.
This event is free. For information, contact the KSU box office at 770-423-6650 or online at www.kennesaw.edu/arts.
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A member of the 35-unit University System of Georgia, Kennesaw State University is a comprehensive, residential institution with a growing student population of more than 21,000 from 142 countries. The third-largest university in Georgia, Kennesaw State offers more than 65 graduate and undergraduate degrees, including new doctorates in education and business.
The KSU College of the Arts is one of only four Georgia institutions to have achieved full national accreditation for all of its arts programs.