Nova Singers, the region's premier professional vocal ensemble, is currently scheduling auditions for the 2012-2013 season.

Singers with extensive choral experience and vocal training are invited to audition. Singers may choose to audition for the entire 2012-13 season or for the Brahms Requiem, which Nova Singers will perform October 20-21, 2012. Interested individuals may contact Nova Singers' founder and music director, Dr. Laura Lane, at 309-341-7229 or llane@knox.edu for more information or to schedule an audition.

The award winning Nova Singers have remained committed to the highest artistic standards since their founding in 1986. The ensemble has performed throughout the Midwest, as well as at state, regional, and national conventions of the American Choral Directors Association.

Each year Nova presents an eight-concert season of outstanding choral music in Galesburg and the Quad Cities. Nova Singers has also released nine professional recordings.

Nova Singers, under the direction of Dr. Laura Lane, presents two performances of Drum Song, Saturday, April 14 at 7:30 pm, at Kresge Recital Hall, Knox College, Galesburg, and Sunday, April 15 at 4:00pm, at First Congregational Church, Moline.

Experience the soaring voices of the Nova Singers punctuated by the rhythms of marimba, bass drum, cymbals, bongos, steel drums, and more! This unique program features love songs by Stephen Paulus, Curse Upon Iron by Veljo Tormis, and the newest composition by Galesburg composer Daniel Godsil entitled High Flight.

"I'm thrilled to be performing with my dear friend and colleague, Nikki Malley," says director Laura Lane. "We've long wanted to collaborate on a program of music for voices and percussion, and here it is!  We have Nikki playing tons of instruments including: marimba, vibes, Shaman drum, bass drum, chimes, bongos and temple blocks, to mention a few. Plus, Galesburg composer Daniel Godsil has written a new piece, called High Flight, for Nova and Nikki, which will really show off Nikki's skills on the vibraphone; we premiere it on these concerts.

 

Joining Nova Singers is guest soloist Nikki Malley, percussion. Malley, Director of Jazz Studies at Knox College, is a jazz and classical percussionist, and has performed throughout central Illinois for the past seventeen years.  An accomplished vibraphonist, she plays tympani with the Knox-Galesburg Symphony and directs both the Knox Jazz Ensemble and the Knox-Rootabaga Jazz Festival.  Malley received her bachelor's degree in music from Knox College, her master's degree from Washington University in St. Louis, and is currently completing her doctorate in musicology at the University of Iowa.

Nova Singers, a professional vocal ensemble under the direction of Dr. Laura Lane, invites you to what promises to be a unique and exciting concert.  Nova Singers is known for bringing a wide variety of choral music to its audiences, and for the beauty and charm the singers impart to their music.  Dr. Lane has been serving the greater Galesburg and Quad-Cities communities since 1986, bringing her passion for music and expressive singing to audiences and singers alike.

Tickets will be available at the door. Admission is $16 for adults and $12 for seniors. Students are admitted free of charge. For information about group rates, tickets, recordings, or other Nova Singers events, call 309-341-7038, or e-mail nova@knox.edu.  Also, please take the opportunity to visit our Facebook page under the keywords 'Nova Singers.

 

Drum Song is sponsored by Blick Art Materials and G&M Distributors.  Nova Singers' 2011-2012 season is partially funded by a grant from the Illinois Arts Council.

Season Finale full of fun and fanfare!

The Quad City Symphony Orchestra season has been at times light and at times full of import, but this weekend's season finale shows that they still have a few tricks up their sleeve. This concert will include the orchestral premiere of local composer William Campbell's Coyote Dances, the felicity and grace of Lydia Artymiw's piano performance, and a suite from Richard Strauss' popular comic opera Der Rosenkavalier specially collected by Music Director Mark Russell Smith to include the famous climactic trio performed by Kara Shay Thompson, Sarah Shafer, and Abigail Nims. By the conclusion of this season finale, you will be dancing in the aisles and singing in your heart.

William Campbell is associate professor of music theory and composition at St. Ambrose University and has long had an abiding interest in mythology and the archetypal characters who inhabit myths. Campbell's Coyote Dances began life as part of a dance score commissioned by the New Articulation Dance Company of Tucson, Arizona. The inspiration for the collaboration came from Native American myths, particularly the "trickster" stories found in the lore of several tribes. Campbell originally wrote the piece as an electro-acoustical work, but in 2004 arranged it for concert band at the request of an ensemble in Missouri. In this guise, Coyote Dances has enjoyed considerable performance success. Campbell has now returned to his Dances and arranged it as an orchestral work for the Quad City Symphony Orchestra who will give this version its world premiere this weekend.

Masterworks 6 will be presented 7:30 p.m., Saturday, March 31, at the Adler Theatre, Davenport; and again at 2:00 p.m., Sunday, April 1, in Centennial Hall, Augustana College, Rock Island. Tickets can be purchased at 800.745.3000, at all Ticketmaster outlets, or by clicking here.

Win $50,000 in the Symphony Raffle

In honor of our 97th season, the QCSO is selling 1000 $97 raffle tickets which could win you $50,000!

In addition to that exciting Grand Prize, nearly $5000 in preliminary cash prizes are to be awarded at Quad City Symphony Orchestra concerts this season, including a $250 "early bird" prize Saturday, March 31, and Sunday, April 1, during Concert Conversations an hour before the performance. Winners of the "early bird" prizes remain eligible for the Grand Prize, so the earlier you buy your ticket, the better your chances of winning!

Buy your tickets today at the QCSO Box Office or at our table in the concert lobby! Find out more and get the full rules by clicking here.

 

Derby Day is just around the corner

Derby Day is moving to The Outing Club in Davenport this Saturday, May 5, so be sure to mark your calendars today! You don't want to miss the mint juleps, horse races, live music, and delicious Derby cuisine. All proceeds from this event go to benefit youth music education right here in your community. The fun starts at 2:00 p.m. and concludes with a live auction after the running of the Kentucky Derby.

Reservations are $75 per person or $520 for a table of eight. Make reservations now by calling 563.322.QCSO (7276) or by clicking here.

 

Rhythm Unleashed on May 19

The Quad City Symphony Orchestra and Principal Percussionist Aaron Williams is very excited to present Rhythym Unleashed, a collection of works from composer Marc Mellits, in the RME's Redstone Room on May 19 at 8:00 p.m. Mellits' unique blending of classical instrumentation with rock rhythms is as sensual as it is intelligent.

Helping Williams bring this vibrant music to life will be QCSO musicians: Principal Cellist Hannah Holman, Pianist Mary Neil, and Percussionist Tony Oliver. The team will perform a variety of Mellits' repertoire, including 5 Quiet Machines, Disciples of Gouda, Mara's Lullaby, and Paranoid Cheese.

Tickets for Rhythym Unleashed are $18 for adults and $7 for students.

 

Casting Crowns with Matthew West, Royal Tailor and Lindsay McCaul

Tickets On Sale: Now

Group Sales: Groups of 10 or more receive 1 free ticket! Call 309-277-1356 or groupsales@iwirelesscenter.com for details.

Phone Sales: 800-745-3000

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