Feb. 22, 2006 -- The Department of Music at Arkansas State University in Jonesboro will present the ASU Concert Choir and Men’s Choir in a preview concert on Tuesday, March 7, at 7:30 p.m. in Riceland Hall of Fowler Center, 201 Olympic Drive.

The preview concert is a preparation for next month’s tours. The Men's Choir has been selected to perform at the southwest division convention of the American Choral Directors Association (SWACDA) in St. Louis, March 9 – 11. The Concert Choir will be performing in Poland and the Czech Republic in honor of Wolfgang Mozart's 250th birthday celebration later in March.

Both choirs are conducted by Dr. Dale Miller, director of choral activities, and accompanied by Ellen Philpot, adjunct professor of music.

The Concert Choir will begin the March 7 program with a performance of Mozart's “Requiem.” March 17 - 25, the ASU Concert choir will be traveling to eastern Europe to sing the Mozart “Requiem” with Forum Sinfonia, a student orchestra from the Krakow Music Academy in Poland. While in eastern Europe, the concert choir will also perform “Requiem” in Krakow, Poland; Warsaw, Poland; and Prague, Czech Republic.
Although the Concert Choir will be accompanied in Krakow, Poland, by Forum Sinfonia, Philpot will accompany the preview concert on the Fowler Center’s nine-foot Steinway grand piano.

Soloists for the Jonesboro and Krakow performances have been selected by audition from the Concert Choir. Soloists are Cassie Black from Searcy, soprano, a senior music education major; Christy Fudge from Newark, mezzo-soprano, a senior music education major; Jonathan R. Shields from Osceola, tenor, a senior vocal performance major; and John Hays from Jonesboro, bass, a graduate student in tuba performance. Understudies for these roles are Mandy Walker of White Hall, Rachel Warnick of Jonesboro, Justin Register of Huntsville, Ala., and Perry Harper of Paragould.

Following a brief intermission, the Men's Choir will present their SWACDA program for the Jonesboro audience. Selections will include “Toccata of Praise” by Joseph Martin, “Ave Maria” by Jacques Arcadelt, “Dirait-on” by Morten Lauridsen, “When David Heard” by Richard Burchard, “Heaven” by Andre' Thomas, and end with the barbershop arrangement of “This Little Light of Mine/Do Lord Medley” by Val Hicks.

The Southwest Division of the American Choral Directors Association consists of approximately 3,000 choral directors and performers from the states of Arkansas, Colorado, Kansas, Missouri, New Mexico, Oklahoma, and Texas. ACDA holds divisional conferences in even-numbered years, and choirs are selected to perform by taped audition. This year's conference in St. Louis, will feature only two men's choirs out of a total of 20 performing choirs, and the Men's Choir will proudly represent ASU.
Members of the choirs and their hometowns are listed here. The sopranos are Kristi Freeman of Poplar Bluff, Mo., Karen Graham of Mayflower, Angela Jackson of Naylor, Mo., Pat Register of Huntsville Ala., Krystal Story of Camden, Jamie Thompson of Rison, Cassie Black of Searcy, Mandy Walker of White Hall, Mollie Black of Benton, Priscilla Noyes of Dexter, Mo., Renee Porter of Houston, Elizabeth Schug of Paragould, Crystal Stormes of Goobertown, Casey Wilburn of Lexa, and Katie Willeford of El Dorado.

The altos are April Brannum of Cardwell, Mo., Megan Duncan of Searcy, Tiffanie Holland of Bryant, Rachel Warnick, Mary Hannah Johnson, and Carol Ann Seagraves, all of Jonesboro, Erica Carter of Marion, Christy Fudge of Newark, Kate Puckett of Wilson, and Carolyn Smith of Huntsville, Ala.

The tenors are Maurice Butler of Wynne, Josh Dennis of Springfield, Mo., Drew Dowdy of Paragould, Galen Perkins of Bartlett, Tenn., Derrick Moore of Forrest City, Rusty Shields of Osceola, Willie Sullivan, Craig McAlister, Matt Vardell, and Charles Winfield, all of Jonesboro, Christopher Mitchell of Trumann, Justin Register of Huntsville, Ala., Ryan Jackson of White Hall, Christopher Thomas of Earle, and Ben Light of West Ridge.

On bass are Greg Eberhard of Harrisburg, Andrew Kjorlaug, Perry Harper, and Jon Schug, all of Paragould, Skyler Mays of Hardy, Patrick Manes of Bryant, John T. Hays and Michael Davis, both of Jonesboro, Derrick Palmer of Brinkley, Nick Robbins of Manila, Jon Stevenson of Little Rock, Keith Westbrook of Benton, Edmond Hampton of Fort Smith, Lance Lewallen of White Hall, Willie Perry of Memphis, Tenn., Josh Wilcoxson of Kennett, Mo., and Ewald Kirschner of Vienna, Austria.

The concert is free and open to the public. For more details, please call the Department of Music at (870) 972-2094.