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St. Olaf Choir, St. Olaf Orchestra to perform reunion concerts Saturday, May 26

mjc
May 23, 2001

NORTHFIELD, Minn. ? The St. Olaf Choir and St. Olaf Orchestra will perform separate Commencement-Reunion Weekend Concerts Saturday, May 26, at the college.

The St. Olaf Orchestra concert will be Saturday at 3:30 p.m.; the St. Olaf Choir concert will be Saturday at 8 p.m. Both events will be in Skoglund Center Auditorium and are free and open to the public. The orchestra is conducted by music faculty member Steven Amundson; the choir is conducted by music faculty member Anton Armstrong.

St. Olaf College?s public radio station, 89.3 WCAL, will broadcast both concerts. The St. Olaf Orchestra concert will be broadcast at 8 p.m. on Saturday. The St. Olaf Choir concert will be broadcast at 8 p.m. on Sunday. A Friday, May 25, concert by the St. Olaf Band will be broadcast at 4 p.m. on Saturday.

The St. Olaf Orchestra will perform "Finlandia, Opus 26, No. 7" by Jean Sibelius; Symphony No. 1 in D Major by Gustav Mahler; "Rhosymedre: Prelude on a Welsh Hymn Tune" by Ralph Vaughan Williams, orchestrated by Arnold Foster; Pini Di Roma (Pines of Rome) by Ottorrino Respighi; and "The Turtle Dove," arranged by G. Winston Cassler.

The St. Olaf Choir will perform "Cantate Domino" by Jan Pieterszoon Sweelinck; "Denn er hat seinen Engeln befohlen über dir" by Felix Mendelssohn-Bartholdy; "Os Justi" by Anton Bruckner; "Sing Ye Praises" by Aaron Copland; "Exaltation" (from Celestial Spring) by F. Melius Christiansen; "Water Night" by Eric Whitacre; "Mundi renovatio" by György Orbán; two folk songs, "Andulko, mé díte" and "Tancuj, tancuj," arranged by Carolyn Jennings; "Las Cuatro Palomas" by Ignacio Pińeiro; "In His Care-O," arranged by William Dawson; "City Called Heaven," arranged by Josephine Poelinitz; and "Hold On!" arranged by Jester Hairston.

The St. Olaf Choir and the Reunion Choir will join voices to perform "Light Everlasting" by Olaf C. Christiansen; "Glorification" (from Celestial Spring) by F. Melius Christiansen; and "Beautiful Savior," arranged by F. Melius Christiansen.

The 90-member St. Olaf Orchestra is considered one of the finest collegiate orchestras in the nation. The ensemble has toured the United States since 1949, and has toured Europe several times, consistently performing to sellout crowds and receiving standing ovations. In 1998 it earned widespread acclaim and rave reviews during performances in the Czech Republic, Austria, Hungary and Slovakia. Last year it received standing ovations in Chicago and Minneapolis for stellar performances during the special 125th Anniversary "Showcase" concerts with the St. Olaf Choir and the St. Olaf Band.

The St. Olaf Orchestra has appeared with conductors Robert Shaw and Sir David Willcocks as well as pianists Leon Fleisher and Victor Borge in performances that are among the highlights of its 94-year history. The ensemble has developed a national reputation for excellence, appearing frequently on National Public Television, and is a major part of the acclaimed St. Olaf Christmas Festival concert.

The 75-voice St. Olaf Choir has toured annually since 1912, when it was founded by F. Melius Christiansen. A 1920 tour to major music centers of the East Coast sowed the seeds of the ensemble?s national reputation, establishing its a cappella style of singing as a primary element in American choral music.

Since then 12 tours to Europe, Asia and Australia have produced international acclaim for the ensemble. In 1988 the group was one of five choirs in the world invited to participate in the Seoul Olympic Arts Festival in South Korea. In 1993 the ensemble completed a 21-day concert tour of Norway and Denmark that included appearances at the Bergen International Festival. A 1997 tour to New Zealand and Australia marked the ensemble?s first tour "down under."

On Memorial Day the St. Olaf Choir will depart for another international tour to Europe.

Armstrong, Harry R. and Thora H. Tosdal professor of music at St. Olaf College, has been conductor of the St. Olaf Choir since 1990. A 1978 bachelor of music graduate of St. Olaf (where he was a member of the St. Olaf Choir), Armstrong later earned a master of music degree in choral music from the University of Illinois and a doctor of musical arts degree in choral conducting from Michigan State University.

He began teaching and conducting at St. Olaf after 10 years with the faculty of Calvin College in Grand Rapids, Mich.

Amundson, the St. Olaf Orchestra?s director since 1981, has shaped the organization into a highly renowned international touring ensemble. He did his undergraduate study at Luther College and received a master?s degree in music from Northwestern University. He has done additional study at the Mozarteum in Salzburg, Austria, the Aspen Music School, and the University of Virginia. In 1980 he was awarded the Hans Haring prize at an international conducting competition in Salzburg, Austria. In 1992 the Minnesota Music Educators Association named him "Minnesota Orchestra Conductor of the Year."

Amundson teaches conducting, music theory and instrumentation at St. Olaf College. An active composer, he premiered a new piece entitled "Rejoicing" during the 1999 St. Olaf Christmas Festival.

St. Olaf College prepares students to become responsible citizens of the world, fostering development of mind, body and spirit. A four-year, coeducational liberal arts college of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), St. Olaf has a student enrollment of 2,950 and a full-time faculty complement of approximately 300. It is one of Money Guide?s top 100 "elite values in college education today," and it leads the nation?s colleges in percentage of students who study abroad.

Contact Michael Cooper at 507-786-3315 or cooperm@stolaf.edu.