The Concert Choir at Greater Atlantic Christian (GAC) School has performed in many places beyond its campus borders, but soon it will travel more than 850 miles to make its first-ever appearance on New York’s legendary concert stage, Carnegie Hall. On Saturday, March 23, at 7 pm, as part of MidAmerica Productions’ 36th annual concert season, GAC School Concert Choir will be an integral part of a larger group performing Morten Lauridsen’s contemporary classic, Lux Aeterna, under the baton of conductor John Ratledge, with the New England Symphonic Ensemble.
“This is
something we’ve been working towards for a long time,” comments Dr. Marcus
Miller, Director of the Concert Choir. “Students can thrive in the arts at GAC,
but it’s important we show them that their artistic aspirations can take them
anywhere, including to the greatest concert stage in America.”
The peaceful
and uplifting Lux Aeterna has proven to be one of the most enduring
choral works of the last quarter century. While it does not follow a specific
form, it is a kind of Requiem. “Every one of the five movements relates to
light, a universal symbol in so many ways,” comments the composer. “I wrote it
as my mother was in the process of dying, so it was a way of, as so many
artists do…dealing with that kind of a situation in an artistic way.”
The choir going to Carnegie includes four Peachtree Corners members:
- Julian Fernandez
- Autumn Clark
- Katherine Kenworthy
- Bronwyn Bailey
Greater Atlanta
Christian School Concert Choir will share the stage, as part of a chorus of
more than 135, with the following participating choirs:
- Middletown Concert Chorale, Middletown, NY (Danielle Cornacchio, Director)
- Hillcrest High School Ensemble, Tuscaloosa, AL (Khristina Motley, Director)
- Chancel Choir of First United Methodist Church, Tuscaloosa, AL (John Ratledge, Director)
- Wagner College Choir, Staten Island, NY (Roger Wesby, Director)
Sharing the Playbill
The March 23 concert at Carnegie Hall will also feature MidAmerica resident conductor David R. Thye, who will lead Dan Forrest’s LUX: The Dawn From On High with a choir of more than 160 voices drawn from four participating choruses:
- Mosinee High School Concert Choir, Mosinee, WI (Carla Dul, Director)
- St. Andrew’s Episcopal School Choir, Austin, TX (Cate Gasco, Director)
- Central Regional High School Choir, Bayville, NJ (Beth Moore, Director)
- Marist College Chamber Choir, Poughkeepsie, NY (Sarah Williams, Director)
The
concert will close with a performance of Beethoven’s rarely heard Triple
Concerto, featuring the international soloists Gianmaria Melis (violin),
Francesco Mariozzi (cello) and Giuseppe Gullotta (piano), under the baton of
conductor Corrado Valvo.
Purchase
Tickets
Concerts in the Isaac Stern Auditorium/Ronald O. Perelman Stage are $150, $100, and $50. Tickets may be obtained by contacting CarnegieCharge at 212-247-7800, visiting the Carnegie Hall Box Office at 57th Street and 7th Avenue in New York, NY, or by going online to www.carnegiehall.org). For more information, contact molly.waymire@piptix.com
Feature image shown is courtesy of GAC’s website.
