Nova Singers, under the direction of Dr. Laura Lane, presents two performances of Johannes Brahms' Requiem, Saturday, October 20 at 7:30 p.m. in Central Congregational Church, Galesburg, and on Sunday, October 21, at 4:00 p.m. at First Congregational Church, Moline.

 

Nova Singers open their 27th season with two performances of Johannes Brahms' "A German Requiem." Joining Nova Singers for these concerts are guest pianist Ashlee Mack and Megan Clewell, and vocalists Sarah Moran, soprano, and Gregory Lewis, baritone.

 

"Brahms named his first great work 'A German Requiem' because he wanted this to be very different from the traditional requiem masses of the Catholic Church," explained Lane, professor of music and director of choral activities at Knox College in Galesburg. " Brahms chose the words himself, from various sources. His choices show us Brahms believed that a requiem encourages us to accept the reality of the transience of life, offers consolation and comfort, and gives us hope for a life after death....I have conducted the Brahms Requiem twice before, with a large chorus and full orchestra. But this will be the first time I've ever done it with a small choir like Nova Singers and piano. I could not have imagined how beautiful the music is when sung by this 30-voice version of Nova Singers---it's so clear and clean, and I can understand every word. Also, the piano accompaniment is incredibly exciting. Ashlee and Megan have become an orchestra at the keyboard!"

About the guest artists:

 

Pianist Megan Clewell is an instructor of piano and staff accompanist at Knox College in Galesburg, Illinois. An active chamber musician and vocal coach, Clewell most recently served as coach/rehearsal pianist at the College-Conservatory of Music at the University of Cincinnati. Previously, she was involved with the Arizona State University Lyric Opera Theatre and the ASU Wind Ensemble.

Pianist Ashlee Mack has performed solo and chamber music with new-music organizations and has given recitals across the United States, and in Germany and Italy, including in 2011 with the Nova Singers. Mack is the coordinator of Piano Instruction at Knox College.

Soprano Sarah Moran has performed with the Galesburg Community Chorus, Elgin Choral Union, Carl Sandburg College Choir, Knox-Galesburg Symphony, Nova Singers, and University of Washington Symphony Orchestra. She is lecturer of voice, opera workshop, and vocal pedagogy at Knox College.

Baritone Gregory GD Lewis has performed  in oratorio and opera in regional houses across the U.S. He will be featured as baritone soloist with the Galesburg Community Chorus in November and the Elgin Choral Union in April and May of 2013. Lewis teaches voice at Knox College and conduct's the Knox College Women's Chorale and the Knox College Men's Ensemble.

Nova Singers, a professional vocal ensemble under the direction of Dr. Laura Lane, is renowned for bringing a wide variety of choral music to its audiences, and for the spirit and charm the singers impart to their music. Dr. Lane has been serving the greater Galesburg and Quad-Cities communities for over twenty-five years, bringing her passion for music and expressive singing to audiences and singers alike.

 

Tickets for this concert are available through Nova's office and at the door.  Admission is $18 for adults and $15 for seniors.  Students are admitted free of charge.  Brahms Requiem is sponsored by OSF St. Mary Medical Center and OSF Galesburg Clinic. Nova Singers' 2012-2013 season is partially funded by a grant from the Illinois Arts Council. For information about tickets, recordings, or other Nova Singers performances, please call Nova Singers at 309-341-7038 or email nova@knox.edu. Information is also available at www.novasingers.com.

DAVENPORT, Iowa --Oct. 4, 2012 -- The musical talents of Quad Cities physicians and families will be featured on Oct. 16 in a recital to benefit music therapy programs for Genesis Health System hospice patients.

The doctors and their families will be performing a wide variety of music, from classical to contemporary. Hard-shoe hornpipe dance and classical dance of India will be featured for the first time. This is the third annual Genesis Doctors in Recital.

Kimberly BMW of Davenport is the presenting sponsor of the event. Others sponsoring the Recital are West Music Quad Cities and Steinway & Sons, Augustana College and the Genesis Health Services Foundation.

Genesis Doctors In Recital will be feature a special performance by Naha Greenholtz, new concertmaster of the Quad City Symphony Orchestra.

Music therapy programs are available to Genesis hospice patients in their homes, Genesis hospitals, nursing homes and at the Clarissa C. Cook Hospice House. Music therapy has been shown to bring quality to life, diminish pain and promote relaxation during end-of-life care.

Genesis Doctors in Recital will be held at 7 p.m. on Oct. 16 in Centennial Hall of Augustana College, Rock Island. Tickets are on sale to the public for $25 and $20 for seniors. Children under 12 are free.

For more information, or to purchase tickets, call the Genesis Health Services Foundation at (563) 421-6861, West Music Quad Cities at (309) 764-9300, the Augustana College box office at (309) 794-7306 or go to www.genesishealth.com/give.

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The Quad City Symphony Orchestra and Quad City Arts kick off the season on November 17 with an extravaganza featuring electric violinist Mark Wood, founding member of Trans-Siberian Orchestra and Quad City Arts Visiting Artist. Conductor Michael Gagliardo leads a cast of local talent like never before assembled, including the Quad City Symphony Orchestra; the Sanctuary Choir of First Presbyterian Church, Davenport; the Holiday Pops Children's Chorus; and for the first time ever, the Holiday Pops Youth Ochestra. The concert begins at 7:30 p.m. at the i wireless Center with the holiday favorites you've come to expect, mixed with many of Trans-Siberian Orchestra's greatest hits.

 

Tickets go on sale Monday, October 8, at the i wireless Center box office, by phone at 800.745.3000, or online at www.qcsymphony.com. One dollar from every ticket will benefit the Genesis Music Therapy Programs.

 

Holiday Pops is sponsored by John Deere.

 

The documentary King Corn will be shown free of charge Friday, October 5, at 6:30 pm at the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of the Quad Cities, 3707 Eastern Ave., Davenport.  It's part of a series of environmental films shown the first Friday of each month at the Congregation's building.  The film is described as follows:

King Corn is a feature documentary about two friends, one acre of corn, and the subsidized crop that drives our fast-food nation. In the film, Ian Cheney and Curt Ellis, best friends from college on the east coast, move to the heartland to learn where their food comes from. With the help of friendly neighbors, genetically modified seeds, and powerful herbicides, they plant and grow a bumper crop of America's most-productive, most-subsidized grain on one acre of Iowa soil. But when they try to follow their pile of corn into the food system, what they find raises troubling questions about how we eat–and how we farm.