Pacific Lutheran University Choir

04/17/2024

The PLU Choir of the West ends our 2023-2024 performance season next week, with two performances of Johannes Brahms' sublime Ein Deutsches Requiem, with the piano transcription for two pianist penned by the composer. We're joined by the exceptional Amy Boers and Oksana Ejokina at the piano.

Performances are Sunday, April 21, 7:30pm, at Blessed Sacrament Church in Seattle, and Tuesday, April 23, 7:30pm, in Lagerquist Concert Hall at Pacific Lutheran University.

The Tuesday performance will be livestreamed for those who cannot experience it in person—https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oDtK35vyj9Q

I am so proud of the students work, growth, and artistry this year. I hope you can join us to hear this exquisite music!

02/21/2024

A reminder that the Choir of the West Tour Homecoming Concert, directed by Dr. Brian Galante, has been rescheduled for tomorrow, Thursday, February 22 at 7:30pm in Lagerquist Concert Hall.

The program is titled "The Gift to Sing", taken from Damien Geter's evocative setting of the James Weldon Johnson poem. Centered on themes of resilience, comfort, hope, renewal, and reimagining, we also feature works by Felix Mendelssohn, William Byrd, Roderick Williams, Saunder Choi, Marques L.A. Garrett, Kestutis Daugirdas, Brian Galante, Caroline Shaw, Craig Hella Johnson, Nilo Alcala, and Juris Karlsons.

Tickets are available in advance online using the following link (or at the door): https://www.eventbrite.com/e/choir-of-the-west-tour-homecoming-concert-tickets-750864735637?aff=oddtdtcreator

We hope to see you all there!

02/01/2024

Choir of the West is currently on their 2024 Tour to Nevada, Arizona, and Southern California. For anyone who is in the area please consider joining us for our final two performances, we would love to see you there: February 1 in Palm Desert, CA (7pm at Hope Lutheran Church), and February 2 in Thousand Oaks, CA (7pm at Ascension Lutheran Church) - more details can be found at www.plu.edu/choir/tour24

04/17/2023

For those in the Portland and Salem area, we are delighted to announce performances offered during our 2023 Choir of the West Spring Tour: we'll be at St. Michael's Lutheran Church in Portland on Thursday, April 20 (7:30pm); and St. Paul's Episcopal Church in Salem on Friday, April 21 (7:30pm). We'll also perform a Tour Homecoming Concert on Tuesday, April 25 (7:30pm) in Lagerquist Concert Hall, and that performance will be live streamed.

Works include exquisite Psalm settings by Johannes Brahms and Caroline Shaw, significant contemporary works for choir and piano by Jake Runestad and JAC Redford, and two works written during--and in response to--the pandemic by Jennifer Lucy Cook and Ken Burton. We'll be joined in performance by collaborative pianist Amy Boers.

Hope to see you there!

10/14/2022

Next week is concert week for PLU Choirs, and we are excited to present our Fall Choral Concerts on Tuesday (Oct 18) and Wednesday (Oct 19), 7:30pm PDT in Lagerquist Concert Hall. The performances mark my debut as Director of Choral Studies and conductor of the Choir of the West. Tiffany Walker joins us this year as Visiting Assistant Professor of Choral Music and conducts Chorale and Singers. And, of course, Barry Johnson brings his inimitable leadership to the Knights Chorus.

Collaborative pianists are Amy Boers (Choir of the West, Chorale, and Singers) and Ella Kalinichenko (Knights Chorus).

I hope that you can join us in person! If not, both performances will be streamed live (link at plu.edu/music). Tickets are available in advance or at the door. Repertoire is below:

CHORALE
Ov'e, lass', il bel viso? (Lauridsen)
The Peace of Wild Things (Runestad)
Locus iste (Bruckner)
Abendlied (Rheinberger)
Holding the Light (Boykin)

KNIGHTS CHORUS
Brothers, Sing On! (Grieg/McKinney)
Psallite Hodie! (V. Johnson)
Contrapunto bestiale alla mente (Banchieri)
Lament of a Fisher's Wife (Singh)

SINGERS
Be like the bird (Betinis)
Myr, zaraz (Szymko)
Ich stand in dunkeln Träumen (C. Schumann)
Hark, I Hear the Harps Eternal (Parker)
Wild Embers (Dunphy)

CHOIR OF THE WEST
A Mighty Fortress Is Our God (Luther/Olds)
O Praise the Lord (Hailstork)
Movements from "love is the every only god" (Redford)
Come to the Woods (Runestad)
Magnificat (Walton), featuring Paul Tegels, organ

COMBINED CHOIRS AND ALUMNI
Beautiful Savior (arr. Christiansen)

Choral Concert, featuring the Choir of the West, University Chorale, University Singers, and University Knights Chorus.