NDSU Concert Choir announces 2020 Spring Tour
March 6, 2020
Fargo, N.D. – The NDSU Concert Choir and Madrigal Singers present the 2020 Spring Tour concert series in North Dakota, featuring dynamic choral works that include music by composers Pachelbel, Gibbons, Casals, and Fissinger.
The Concert Choir and the Madrigal Singers, directed by Michael Weber, will perform in Grand Forks, Jamestown, New Rockford, Richardton, Bismarck, and Valley City; culminating in their home concert on March 22th at 4:00 p.m. at Peace Lutheran Church in Fargo.
Grand Forks | Thursday, March 12 | 7:00 PM
Calvary Lutheran Church • 1405 S. 9th St.
Jamestown | Friday, March 13 | 7:30 PM
St. James Basilica • 622 1st Ave. S.
New Rockford | Saturday, March 14 | 7:30 PM
New Rockford High School • 437 1st Ave. N
Richardton Concert Sunday, March 15 | 2:30 PM
Assumption Abbey • 418 3rd Ave. W.
Bismarck | Monday, March 16 | 7:30 PM
Cathedral of the Holy Spirit • 519 Raymond St.
Valley City | Tuesday, March 17 | 7:30 PM
St. Catherine’s Church • 540 3rd Ave. NE
Fargo* | Sunday, March 22 | 4:00 PM
Peace Lutheran Church • 1011 12th Avenue N
*Adults $5, Seniors and Non-NDSU Students $2, NDSU Students free with ID.
The NDSU Concert Choir has a distinguished tradition of performing eminent choral literature at the highest level of artistry.
The Concert Choir rehearses daily and performs several concerts each year on campus and during annual spring tours. Most recently, the choir toured Croatia and Italy in 2012, Iceland and Scotland in 2015, and Germany and Denmark in May of 2018. The choir plans to tour Norway in 2021.
The NDSU Madrigal Singers is a highly selective ensemble that performs vocal chamber music from the Renaissance through the 21st century. They present the annual Madrigal Dinner in full costume every December. The Madrigal Singers were selected to sing at the 2020 North Dakota American Choral Directors Association. They tour each spring with the NDSU Concert Choir.
North Dakota State University’s Challey School of Music
The NDSU Challey School of Music promotes high-quality teaching, artistic performance, outreach and scholarly excellence through its performances and degree programs. For more, visit www.ndsu.edu/performingarts.
NDSU Professor named North Dakota ACDA Choral Director of the Year
March 4, 2020
Fargo, N.D. – Dr. Michael Weber was named the North Dakota American Choral Directors Association (NDACDA) Choral Director of the Year at the recent NDACDA State Conference in Grand Forks, North Dakota. Dr. Weber, Professor of Choral Activities at North Dakota State University, conducts the Madrigal Singers and The Statesmen of NDSU and teaches classes in choral conducting, choral literature and music education. Under the direction of Dr. Weber, the Madrigal Singers performed in the conference’s Showcase Concert.
Founded in 1959, ACDA is a nonprofit music education organization whose central purpose is to promote excellence in choral music through performance, composition, publication, research, and teaching. In addition, ACDA strives through arts advocacy to elevate choral music’s position in American society.
NDSU Director of Choral Activities conducts Minnesota All-State Mixed Choir
Feb. 19, 2020
Fargo, N.D. – NDSU Director of Choral Activities, Dr. Jo Ann Miller participated as the guest conductor for the Minnesota All-State Mixed Choir. In addition to the Mixed Choir, there is also a Soprano/Alto choir conducted this year by Therees Hubbard of St. Olaf Collegen and a Tenor/Bass choir conducted this year by Michael Culloton of Concordia College.
The Minnesota Music Educators Association All-State – considered one of the top programs of its kind across the nation – develops high school musicians and school music programs. The All-State program supports secondary school music ensembles, MMEA members and members’ students.
Students attend camp in August where they meet their guest conductor and attend long hours of rehearsals and sectionals. Although the major focus during the summer camp is developing advanced technique and making music, a full schedule of recreation and social activities gives the students an opportunity to relax and develop new friendships. The August concert is the result of great dedication and commitment by some of the most talented young musicians in Minnesota. All of the young musicians meet again in February to perform at Orchestra Hall as part of the MMEA Midwinter Clinic.
Theatre NDSU presents: Into the Woods
Feb. 18, 2020
Fargo, N.D.
Theatre NDSU in collaboration with the NDSU Challey School of Music presents “Into the Woods” on February 27-29 at 7:30 p.m. and March 1 at 2:00 p.m. Performances are held in Festival Concert Hall in the Reineke Fine Arts building at North Dakota State University.
When the Baker and the Baker’s Wife learn they cannot have a child because of a witch’s curse, they set out on a journey to break the spell. Along the way they meet Little Red Riding Hood, Cinderella, Jack, and Rapunzel. James Lapine and Stephen Sondheim’s Tony Award-winning musical reimagines classic fairytales, and reveals a moral for all eras.
Tickets for the show are $10 for students, $15 for seniors and $20 for adults. Tickets are available through the NDSU Box Office at (701) 231-7969 or online at ndsu.showare.com
NDSU Students can get their FREE ticket by calling or visiting the Performing Arts Box Office.
Photo Credit: Justin Eiler, NDSU Photographer
Performance Location:
Reineke Fine Arts Building is located on the corner 12th Avenue North and Bolley Drive.
NDSU Choral Symposium inspires new book: Relevance in the Choral Art
Feb. 10, 2020
Fargo, N.D. Fargo, N.D. –
Relevance—the third NDSU Choral Symposium—was held at North Dakota State University in October 2018, organized and hosted by Challey School of Music choral faculty members Jo Ann Miller, Charlette Moe and Michael Weber. Scholarly and practical presentations have now been collected in a new book compiled by American Choral Directors Association executive director Tim Sharp.
The symposium provided opportunities for choral musicians around the hemisphere to discuss and collaborate on the topic of the significance and relevance of choral music in our culture today. Presenters shared many progressive ideas and experiences in creative programming—looking at standard repertoire in new ways and creatively serving the needs of the people in their own communities. Exciting examples included developing choirs for special populations, leading prison choirs and choirs for people with dementia and Parkinson’s disease, and providing opportunities for musical growth for those and other special populations.
With a foreword by Jo Ann Miller, “Relevance in the Choral Art: A Pathway to Connections” is the fourth book in ACDA Executive Director Tim Sharp’s choral series, and an important study of how choral music is engaging new audiences and participants. The articles represent some of the profound and, yes, relevant work our colleagues are doing across the country. The breadth and depth of the commitment at the symposium was an inspiration. These choral musicians are developing empathy, understanding, hope, cultural awareness, trust, and community—and they are experiencing and encouraging diversity as well as addressing challenging social issues.
The book is published by GIA Publications and available through GIA, Amazon, and any retail music dealer..
NDSU Music Major donates marrow stem cells without skipping a beat
December 17, 2019
Fargo, N.D. Fargo, N.D. –
In 2018 North Dakota State University Music Education major Isaac Hicks registered as a donor of marrow stem cells with Be the Match, the global leader in bone marrow transplantation. Hicks was inspired to register because of his music hero, Dallas Symphony Orchestra principal trumpet player Ryan Anthony, who visited and performed a concert in Bismarck, ND a few years prior. Anthony was diagnosed in 2012 with multiple myeloma and became a marrow stem cell recipient. Anthony created the Ryan Anthony Foundation to raise money for cancer research and raise awareness through concert performances with world-renown musicians. He collaborated with colleagues to create the Cancer Blows: Thirty Trumpet Legends, One Moment in Time, Determined to Help Blow Cancer Away album which features musicians from all over the world.
Eight months after registering he received a call that he was a potential match with a possible recipient. According to BeTheMatch.org a patient’s likelihood of finding a matching donor is estimated to range from 19-80%, and about 8% of registered members who complete additional testing will actually donate. Additional testing confirmed that he was a match with a patient from Europe who was suffering from lymphoblastic leukemia and in need of a marrow stem cell transplant. Hicks completed three additional rounds of bloodwork which verified that he was a healthy match and able to donate. Details were finalized, appointments were scheduled, and flights were booked. Isaac traveled to Cook’s Children’s Hospital in Dallas, Texas for the procedure, accompanied by his girlfriend, Sara Schroeder. All expenses were paid by Be the Match including travel, lodging, dining, and the cost of the medical procedure. As luck would have it, Ryan Anthony lives in Dallas Texas and while there for his procedure Hicks got to meet his longtime hero. The two enjoyed talking about music together and Anthony expressed that Isaac was his hero. Hicks was potentially saving someone’s life.
Hicks’ marrow stem cell retrieval went smoothly and they collected the maximum amount possible for the recipient in need. Hicks chose to learn as little as possible before the procedure and while in recovery he opted to learn a little more about the surgery. The seriousness of being a donor and following through with the donation could mean life or death for a waiting recipient. The hope with a transplant is that the new bone marrow will jumpstart the patient’s existing bone marrow to make more white blood cells. Five days prior to the operation the recipient’s immune system is medically shut down to purposely eliminate their white blood cells. In order for a person to be a donor, extra measures are taken to ensure donors understand the seriousness of their commitment. He never considered backing out for a second and explained that “if anyone in my family would need this I would hope they do it for them”.
Hicks received positive encouragement from both his family and his teachers at the Challey School of Music. With blood work, a physical, surgery, and recovery he only missed two and half weeks of school spread out over a few months and all of his teachers were more than willing to accommodate his modified schedule. Two days after surgery he came back to Fargo and performed a gig he already had lined up. Hicks was inspired by Ryan Anthony who would often drive from chemotherapy straight to a performance without skipping a beat.
On December 7th Hicks received a letter that informed him that the donation worked and it did, in fact, save the recipient’s life.
A message from Hicks: “I am grateful that the faculty here at the Challey School of Music have accommodated this wonderful opportunity. After recovering I decided to start a registry drive for our community called Fargo4aCure.
Isaac encourages everyone to consider being a donor. Further information can be found at join.bethematch.org/fargo4acure.
Theatre NDSU presents: A Dream Play
November 19, 2019
Fargo, N.D. Fargo, N.D. – Theatre NDSU, the production company at North Dakota State University, presents “A Dream Play” on December 5-7 and December 11-14. Performances are at 7:30 p.m. in the Askanase Auditorium in Askanase Hall.
A young woman named Agnes embarks on a journey to find the meaning of life—but this world is different. Everything can happen, everything is possible and probable. Time and place do not exist; the imagination spins, weaving new patterns on a flimsy basis of reality. Written in 1901, Strindberg’s A Dream Play weaves seamlessly through the dreamer’s imagination.
Tickets for the show are $10 for students, $15 for seniors and $20 for adults. Tickets are available through the NDSU Box Office at (701) 231-7969 or online at ndsu.showare.com
NDSU Students can get their FREE ticket by calling or visiting the Performing Arts Box Office.Photo Credit: Justin Eiler, NDSU Photographer
Performance Location: Askanase Hall is located on the corner 12th Avenue North and Albrecht Blvd.
Challey School of Music students win four awards at student auditions
November 8, 2019
Fargo, N.D. North Dakota State University students from the Challey School of Music, recently competed and placed in the Minnesota National Association of Teachers of Singing (NATS) competition held at St. John’s University in Collegeville, Minnesota. Twenty-three music majors attended the prestigious student audition competition, of the twenty-three, four were awarded as finalists in their division. Student awards included one first place, one second place, and two third place. Dr. Mariane Lemieux-Wottrich and Dr. Kelly Burns accompanied the students along with four NDSU graduate student pianists.
The mission of NATS is to “encourage the highest standards of the vocal art and of ethical principles in the teaching of singing; and to promote vocal education and research at all levels, both for the enrichment of the general public and for the professional advancement of the talented”.
Freshman Treble
Julie Ly, 1st place
Jessica Livdahl, 3rd place
Sophomore TBB
Seth Brandl, 3rd place
Senior TBB
Elijah O’Sullivan, 2nd place
Retired architect pursues music dream, enrolls as Freshman at NDSU
October 09, 2019
Fargo, N.D. -Fargo, N.D. – Mark Preston isn’t your average freshman. He’s lived a successful international career as an architect, raised a family, and is enthusiastically out of early retirement to pursue a second bachelor’s degree, only this time in music. Preston started his fall semester in 2019 enrolled as a freshman and is working toward his Bachelor of Science degree in Music.
As a 1977 alum, the NDSU campus is familiar to Preston. However a lot has changed since he received his architecture degree. During his first enrollment at NDSU he sang alongside Dr. Jo Ann Miller, NDSU’s current director of choral activities, in the concert choir under the direction of Dr. Edwin Fissinger. As a student colleague 45 years ago and now under her direction, Preston has found it to be an exceptional part of his learning experience. Not only does he have experience in NDSU’s concert choir, he’s also performed in the annual special productions and played the part of the jester with the Madrigal singers.
Preston has always had a passion and interest in music. He played cello in his high school orchestra, took piano lessons, and has sung in numerous community choruses during his professional career as an architect. He has dreamed of choral arranging and once thought it would be fun and easy to just “take a few classes,” and it would all make sense. He has since grown to appreciate that music degrees are complicated and challenging, but is excited to learn everything he can to begin his future in choral writing.
Preston’s outlook on life is a positive one—“There is not necessarily wrong or right; you’re just fine tuning as you go”. He hopes to graduate in 2023.
Masterclass with Patrick Sheridan
October 09, 2019
Fargo, N.D. -Fargo, N.D. – The Challey School of Music is excited to present a Masterclass with guest artist Patrick Sheridan on Sunday, October 27th at 7:00 PM in Beckwith Recital Hall. The masterclass is free and open to the public.
Patrick Sheridan is one of the most celebrated tuba soloists in the instrument’s history. He has performed more than 3,000 concerts in over 50 countries, in venues ranging from the White House, to NBA half-time shows, to the Hollywood Bowl. With Sam Pilafian, Patrick Sheridan is the co-author of the world’s best selling breathing method for instrumental improvement, The Breathing Gym which was awarded the 2009 EMMY® Award for Instructional/Informational Video Production.