Tech’s Chorale and Concert Choir will perform a free concert on Oct. 27 at the Bryan Fine Arts building. “Our concert is a really big deal,” Sarah Dingwall, historian for the American Chorale Directors Association said. “This involves over 125 students on this campus.”
Dingwall and the Tech choirs are bringing something new, she said, to this year’s shows.
“Chorale is doing ‘Cloudburst’ by Eric Whitacre. This is a pretty spectacular piece involving more than just our ordinary voices,” Dingwall said. “It involves everything different about music. We make vocal noises, we’re changing everything. There are cluster sounds and we have a lot of percussionists coming in to help at the end. There’s movement. It’s really amazing.”
Also by Whitacre, Tech Chorale will try and shift the mindset of the audience with “Seal Lullaby,” a “very moving” piece, Dingwall said.
“You can feel the movement of the ocean through the music,” Dingwall added.
Along with this fresh turn, the concert will include classic spirituals.
“One of (the spirituals) is ‘Judgement.’ It has basses going really low and this amazing lick the altos pull off. It isn’t often you hear altos taking the lead,” Dingwall said.
“The concert is going to be a good mix of classical and Neoclassical music,” Dingwall said, hopeful for attendees to experience the variations Tech Chorale and Concert Choir are trying to stage. “It’s worthwhile for people to come for two songs, even, if that’s all they can stay for. I know the Concert Choir is doing some cool pieces, too.
Later in the scheduled events, Chorale will perform at Santa’s Workshop Dec. 4 and 5 at the Hyder-Burks Pavilion.
“We bring in nearby high school choirs to help perform, too.” Dingwall said. On Dec. 4, Tech will be accompanied by Seigel High School and then by Cookeville High School on Dec. 5.
The next concert is free to both students and non-students while the Christmas concerts are $5.
