(April 3, 2013)

Centenary Choir and First UMC Choir to perform Mozart Mass

SHREVEPORT, LA — The Centenary Choir and the First United Methodist Church Chamber Choir will join to present Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's Grand Mass in C Minor. The performance will take place on Sunday, April 14, at 3 p.m. in the sanctuary of First United Methodist Church of Shreveport. The performance will be under the direction of Dr. David Hobson, choral director of the Centenary College Choir and the First United Methodist Church Chamber Choir.

"The exploration of this masterwork has been a tremendous opportunity for our students, made more profound by the collaboration with the gifted musicians from First Methodist Church as well as the community," said Hobson. "But the true joy of performing any great musical work of art goes beyond exploration to its live re-creation for the modern audience."

A full orchestra will accompany the combined chorus. Featured soloists will be Centenary alumna Lori Lusted and three faculty members from Centenary's Hurley School of Music: Dr. Gale Odom, Dr. Horace English, and Mr. Cory Wikan.

Conceived on the scope of such works as Bach's B Minor Mass, the composition is significant as Mozart wrote it for personal reasons rather than commission, offering a glimpse of the full breadth of the composer's unbridled creativity.

"Influenced by the style of Bach and Handel, this work succeeds as a magnificent fusion of Baroque counterpoint and Mozart's own lyric operatic style," said Hobson. "Simply stated, it is a musical tour de force, not often heard due to its tremendous technical demands."

The performance is free and open to the public.