1
Choral Music at Lewis & Clark College Welcome to Lewis & Clark College! Our Department of Music provides an exceptional program with a wealth of opportunities for students interested in music: taking a class in advanced music history or theory, learning to read music for the first time, composing electronic music, learning Ghanaian drumming, studying solo voice or instruments, or performing in an opera or with an ensemble. The choral music program at Lewis & Clark seeks to provide students with high-level choral singing experiences that enhance their understanding of vocal technique, choral methods, and music history through performing literature from many stylistic periods and countries. Last year, for example, our choirs performed music from Mozart’s Requiem to South African freedom songs to Renaissance motets. Best of all, the students who comprise the choral program are energetic, dedicated, and enthusiastic, and have a wonderful time singing together. Regardless of whether you have a great deal of choral singing experience or your experience extends mostly to shower singing, there will be a choir for you at Lewis & Clark. Cappella Nova is Lewis & Clark’s premier mixed choir, performing music from all eras and major choral works with orchestra, and participating in a spring break tour every other year – this year to California. The Women’s Chorus will perform some of the exceptional music available for treble voices, from powerful world music to Classical music to newly composed works. And, due to the extraordinary amount of interest in our choirs at Lewis & Clark, we will be adding a third choir, either a men’s ensemble or a large mixed ensemble, based on the number of people who audition and their preferences and availability. On the first day of classes, Monday, August 31st, we will host a choir meet-and-greet session from 4:30-6:00 in the Evans Music Center Auditorium. Refreshments will be provided. At that time, we’ll acquaint you with our audition procedure (absolutely easy and painless, with nothing to prepare) and the schedule for the year; auditions will take place from Tuesday, September 1st, through Saturday, September 5th. Although participation in a choir constitutes a one-credit course, you’ll want to wait to register for choir as a course until after your audition, when you’ll know for sure which choir is yours. Choir dates to save: Monday, August 31, 4:30-6:00: Choir Meet and Greet Friday, September 11 through Sunday, September 13: Choir Retreat to Anderson Lodge, WA Thursday, October 22: Rogers Concert, featuring music department ensembles and solo performers Friday, December 4: Fall Choir Concert March 19-28: Spring Break Cappella Nova Tour to California Please contact our conductor, Kathy FitzGibbon, at [email protected] if you have any questions, or see the Department of Music website at www.lclark.edu/dept/music. We look forward to meeting you.
