Choral Festival to Hit the Right Notes

The Westmont Fall Choral Festival, combining the voices of about 400 students from 14 high schools, is Friday, Oct. 28, at 4:45 p.m. and 7 p.m., both at First Presbyterian Church, 21 E. Constance Ave. Half of the choirs will perform at 4:45 p.m. and the remaining half will perform prior to Westmont ensembles at 7 p.m. Both performances are free and open to the public, although seating is limited. For more information, please call (805) 565-6040.

Highland High School, Providence Chorale, Rosemead High School, The Thacher School, Valley Christian, Village Christian School, Santa Barbara High School and Fresno Christian High School will perform in the afternoon concert.

Faith Lutheran High School (Nevada), Arvin High School, Monache High School, Fullerton Union High School, Providence Chamber Singers, Righetti High School and Saugus High School will perform in the evening concert.

The Westmont College Choir, Choral Union and Chamber Singers will also participate in the festival. Michael Shasberger, Adams professor of music and worship, conducts the choir, accompanied by pianist Neil Di Maggio.

The college choir will be the featured ensemble on the evening program, presenting works ranging from the Renaissance polyphony of Vittoria’s “Ne timeas Maria” to a contemporary setting of Shakespeare’s “How sweet the moonlight falls” by Z. Randall Stroope, and soulful expressions of South African music performed in Swahili. The choir will also sing the music of contemporary composers Kim Andre Arnesen (“Flight Song”), Elliot Levine (“i thank You God”), David Childs (“Where Your Barefoot Walks”) and Nancy Wertsch (“Blessed Assurance”).

The festival will conclude with all the high school groups combining to perform a mass choral piece, “Ave Verum Corpus,” by W.A. Mozart and sung in Latin.

Before performing, the students will attend workshops with professors Shasberger and Grey Brothers, as well as adjunct instructor Robert Rockabrand and guest clinicians Kuan Fen Liu and Gary Unruh at Deane Chapel, First Presbyterian, Trinity Episcopal, First United Methodist and First Congregational Churches.