(November 17, 2015)

Centenary College Choir tours South Louisiana

The 2015-2016 Centenary College Choir

SHREVEPORT, LA — The Centenary College Choir takes its 2015-2016 program, It's About Time!, on the road to South Louisiana November 20 through 22. The tour opens with a joint performance with Centenary's Camerata choral ensemble at the Louisiana Music Educators Association (LMEA) conference and includes appearances at four United Methodist churches.

The Choir and Camerata will perform for Louisiana high school All State singers at the LMEA conference in Baton Rouge on Friday, November 20. The Choir then departs for Lafayette to begin the weekend concert tour:

  • November 20: First United Methodist Church, Lafayette, LA, 7:00 p.m.
  • November 21: First United Methodist Church, Hammond, LA, 7:00 p.m.
    Concert is sponsored by FUMC Hammond, FUMC Ponchatoula, and Well UMC Ponchatoula
  • November 22: University United Methodist Church, Baton Rouge, LA, 8:30 & 11:00 a.m. (morning services); First United Methodist Church, Alexandria, LA, 6:00 p.m.

The Choir's 2015 theme, It's About Time!, explores the intersection of time and eternity. Vibrant energetic spirituals such as Ain't Got Time to Die, Ask the Watchman, and In Dat Great Gittin' Up Mornin' are counter balanced by majestic classics such as Ralph Vaughan Williams Lord, Thou Hast Been Our Refuge and Srul Irving Glick's stirring symphonic movement, The Hour Has Come. Broadway lovers will note the nostalgic "Sunrise, Sunset" from Fiddler on the Roof, and big band enthusiasts will love the throwback, Tico Tico.

Other highlights include three arrangements of pop music from the King Singers: Blackbird, MLK, and You Are the New Day. The program also features the world premiere of student composer Jaydon Dahlquist's A Season for All Things.

Hailed as "America's Singing Ambassadors," the Centenary Choir has traveled for seven decades with a repertoire ranging from Bach to Broadway, world folk music to contemporary church music, and oratorio to opera. The Choir was organized in 1941 by Dr. A. C. "Cheesy" Voran, and has performed throughout the world, giving concerts in 32 nations on six continents. The Choir is affiliated with Centenary's Hurley School of Music and offers scholarships for all its members. Members audition November through February for the following term. Persons wishing to audition should contact the director of the choir to arrange an appointment.

For more information about the Centenary College Choir, and future tour dates, visit www.centenary.edu/choir.