2 high school choirs to perform on campus; resident conductor comes from Texas Tech
Two of Tennessees top-rated high school choirs will perform in concert at Austin Peay State University next week.At 7:30 p.m., Thursday, Feb. 22 in the Concert Hall of the Music/Mass Communication Building, Knoxvilles Seymour High School Concert Chorale and Memphis Bartlett High School Chorale will join APSUs choral ensembles for the Choral Festivalan evening of magical musical entertainment.
Two of Tennessee's top-rated high school choirs will perform in concert at Austin Peay State University next week.
At 7:30 p.m., Thursday, Feb. 22 in the Concert Hall of the Music/Mass Communication Building, Knoxville's Seymour High School Concert Chorale and Memphis' Bartlett High School Chorale will join APSU's choral ensembles for the Choral Festivalan evening of magical musical entertainment.
According to Dr. Karen Kenaston-French, director of choral activities at APSU, the high school choirs from Knoxville and Memphis have earned superior ratings at the state choral festival, and many of the students within each have made the All-State Choir consistently.
Each choir will perform individually. At the conclusion of the evening's performances, the Bartlett High School and Seymour High School Chorale Choirs will perform together under the direction of guest clinician, Dr. John Dickson, director of choral studies, Texas Tech University, Lubbock.
The Feb. 22 Choral Festival, which also features the highly acclaimed APSU Choir and Chamber Singers, is the culmination of Dickson's APSU residency and the end of a daylong workshop for the two guest high school choirs.
Kenaston-French says the Choral Festival, with its 180 singers, brings to the stage a high level of talent and youthful energy under the direction of a nationally renowned guest conductor.
APSU has provided the opportunity for these two high school choirs from opposite ends of the state to perform in a concert hall that was ranked in The Robb Report Home Entertainment (March 2006) as one of the top 10 concert halls in the U.S. when it comes to a perfect blend of acoustics and aesthetics. Among the other venues listed was Carnegie Hall in New York City.
The Choral Festival is free and open to the public. For more information, contact Kenaston-French by telephone at (931) 221-7002 or e-mail at kenastonk@apsu.edu. -- Dennie B. Burke