Westmont Choirs Sing in the Spring

Westmont’s choral groups unite for their annual spring concert 8 p.m. April 19 at Trinity Episcopal Church. Admission is free, but a free-will donation will be requested.

The concert will open with an African processional, featuring all Westmont choristers.

The Westmont College Choir, directed by Steven R. Hodson, will feature Full Fathom Five by Westmont student Joshua LaMar and selected movements of the great English composer William Byrd's serene Mass for Four Voices. The choir will also present the richly textured eight-part Crucifixus by Antonion Lotti, a delightful Russian choral concerto, Magpie Chatter, by Georgy Sviridov, and rousing spirituals by Moses Hogan.

Vox Lumina Women's Chorale, directed by Rebecca Leftwich Hodson, will perform a variety of repertoire from the 20th century, both sacred and secular, featuring a delightful setting of Shakespeare's text Sweet Lovers Love the Spring by Mel Powell and the beloved Nigra Sum by Pablo Casals.

The Advanced Choir of the Santa Barbara Children's Chorus will join Vox Lumina as special guests in a performance of Creation's Praise. Composed by Ruth Watson Henderson, a contemporary Canadian woman composer, this beautiful and moving composition utilizes the unusual forces of double treble choir and four-hand piano.

Also featured will be the Westmont Chamber Singers, directed by Grey Brothers. The centerpiece of the Chamber Singers’ performance will be the trio of signature choral pieces by Claude Debussy, the Trois Chansons de Charles d'Orléans. The 14-voice a cappella ensemble will also perform two madrigals of the Italian Renaissance and a haunting setting by John Rutter of the English folk song “O Waly, Waly.”

For more information, contact the music office at (805) 565-6040 or the public affairs office at 565-7057 or pubaffairs@westmont.edu.