Guitar Night at the Bistro

Guitar Night at the Bistro takes place Thursday, Dec. 11, at 7 p.m. The concert is free.

Prepare yourself for a fun evening of guitar music from some of the most talented guitarists at Willamette. Students of Associate Professor John Doan will perform iin a variety styles, including classical, flamenco, blues and popular. The program will begin with the guitar class making its Willamette debut and Doan will perform to close out the evening. Come early for a good seat.

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University Hosts Urban Earth, Art and Music Festival

The 10th annual Wulapalooza, Willamette University’s free music, art and Earth festival, will be held Saturday, April 26, on Brown Field.

Associated Students of Willamette University present the festival, which begins at noon with the main music stage opening at 5 p.m. This year’s featured performers are Mobius Band from New York, and Portland bands The Blow, Blitzen Trapper and Panther. Other stages will feature performances from local and student-organized bands, a student art show and other activities.

Each year Wulapalooza includes a fundraiser for a local charitable foundation. This year the event will sponsor the Marion-Polk Food Share. The event is free, but canned food or monetary donations for the food share are welcome.

This year Wulapalooza celebrates its 10th anniversary. In the past decade, the event has evolved from a small festival providing a creative outlet for students on campus into a community event that brings in nationally recognized talent.

The festival seeks to provide a venue for community members to visit Willamette’s campus, familiarize themselves with student organizations and be the university’s guests for a day of music, art and entertainment.

For more information, call the Office of Student Activities at (503) 370-6463 or visit www.willamette.edu/org/wulapalooza.

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Spring Jazz Night at Willamette

The Willamette University music department will present its final Jazz Night of the year Friday, April 27, at 7:30 p.m. in Smith Auditorium at Willamette University. The free concert will feature the Willamette Singers under the direction of Wallace Long, the Willamette Jazz Ensemble under the direction of Tim Robblee, and various student combos.

The Willamette Singers is a 17–member vocal jazz ensemble. The Singers’ tenth CD, Sea Journey, was released in 2006. They will perform the Swingle Singers’ arrangement of “All the Things You Are,” a funk version of the Beatle’s “Ticket to Ride,” and other standards, including an arrangement of “My Romance.”

The evening will end with a swinging set for the Jazz Ensemble. This big band will be playing a variety of charts, including Michael Mossman’s Latin arrangement of “A Night in Tunisia” and Frank Foster’s “Shiny Stockings.”

“It will be a night full of great music and shouldn’t be missed,” said Willamette music Professor Wallace Long. “It will be the last time many of these students will be performing with these groups. Come out, enjoy some amazing jazz, and help end the year with a bang.”

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Willamette University Musicians Perform with Bush Elementary Children

The Willamette University music department will present its Spring Choral Concert Sunday, April 22, at 7 p.m. in Hudson Hall at Willamette University. The free concert will feature Male Ensemble Willamette, Voce Femminile, the Willamette University Chamber Choir and guest ensemble La Marimbanda from Bush Elementary School.

Male Ensemble Willamette, under the direction of Paul Klemme, will perform its signature piece, “Brothers, Sing On,” followed by a barbershop tune entitled “Love Letters,” and a jazz arrangement of “The Girl from Ipanema.” Student conductor Reece Sauvé will direct a performance of the first two movements of “Missa cum Jubilo,” by Maurice Duruflé, and the group will close with The Nylons’ tune “Happy Together.”

Voce Femminile, under the direction of Christine Welch Elder, will present literature from classics to contemporary masterpieces. Featured will be Schubert’s monumental “Song of the Spirit Over the Waters,” as well as “Dawn” from Sea Visions. They will highlight their feline prowess with the playful “Duet for Two Cats” by Rossini, and close with the perennial favorite “How Can I Keep from Singing?”

The Willamette Choral Department, under the direction Wallace Long, welcomes La Marimbanda, the acclaimed Bush Elementary marimba ensemble directed by Martin Sobelman. They will perform “Clavé” and “Abandon” by Walt Hampton, and “Steel Drum” by Martin Sobelman. La Marimbanda will also combine with the Willamette University Chamber Choir to perform an arrangement of “Siyahamba,” by Stephan Barnicle.

The Willamette University Chamber Choir will then feature the culminating performances of three senior projects: Michelle Mendoza will conduct Hildor Lundvik’s “Early Spring” from Nocturnes; Stevie Greenwell will conduct Wilhelm Stenhammar’s “Garden of Seraglio” from Three Choral Ballads; and Morgana Williams will conduct Veljo Tormis’ “Forced to Get Married.” The choir will also perform Donald Patriquin’s arrangement of the French-Canadian folk song “I Hear the Millwheel,” featuring a rousing piano performance by student Debbie Southorn. The choir will close with its signature piece, “Nunc Dimittis,” as a send-off to graduating seniors.

For information call Diane at (503) 370-6255.

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University Hosts Urban Earth, Art and Music Festival

The ninth annual Wulapalooza, Willamette University’s free music, art and Earth festival, will be held Saturday, April 28, on Brown Field.

The festival, sponsored by Associated Students of Willamette University, begins at noon, with the main music stage opening at 5 p.m. This year’s featured bands are The Long Winters from Seattle, Viva Voce from Portland, Cloud Cult from Minneapolis, and Taphabit from Bellingham, Wash. Other stages will feature performances from local and student-organized bands, an art booth and exhibit, a film show and many other activities.

Each year, Wulapalooza includes a fundraiser for a local charitable foundation, and this year, the event will sponsor the Marion-Polk Food Share. The festival also seeks to provide a venue for community members to mesh with Willamette’s campus, familiarize themselves with student organizations and be the university’s guests for a day of music, art and entertainment.

For more information, go to www.wulapalooza.org or call the Office of Student Activities at (503) 370-6463.

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Willamette Choirs Perform Handel’s Messiah

The Willamette Master Chorus and Willamette University Chamber Choir and Master Chorus Orchestra will perform Handel’s Messiah Saturday, March 17, at 7 p.m. and Sunday, March 18, at 3 p.m. in Hudson Hall in the Mary Stuart Rogers Music Center at Willamette University.

The performance will be conducted by Wallace Long, Willamette choral music director, with soloists Christine Welch, Lisa Actor, Les Green and Kevin Helppie.

“The Messiah, composed in just three weeks in 1742, is one of the greatest musical masterpieces of all time,” Wallace said. “Written as one man’s inspired expression of faith, the piece has transcended religion and culture to become the most performed oratorio in history.”

One of the great traditions of Messiah performances began in 1743. George Frideric Handel’s patron, King George II, stood in respect to the Almighty when the Hallelujah chorus began. The audience respectfully followed the monarch’s lead, and the tradition of standing during the Hallelujah chorus continues to this day.

Typically, the oratorio is performed during the Christmas season. For this performance focus will be placed on the second and third parts of the work that speak to themes more relevant to the Lenten and Easter season.

“The performance will feature four of the Northwest’s most accomplished soloists,” Wallace said.

Mezzo-soprano Lisa Actor teaches at Oregon State University and Pacific University. A versatile performer in opera, oratorio, concert and recital music, Actor has performed numerous works in the Northwest and across the nation.

Tenor Leslie Green is in high demand throughout the Northwest. Praised for his expressive, seemingly effortless singing, Green performs a wide variety of literature ranging from Bach arias to contemporary art songs. Green maintains a private voice studio in Vancouver, Wash., and teaches at the Oregon Episcopal School.

Baritone Kevin Helppie maintains an active performing career, including recitals, oratorios, operas and popular music concerts. Helppie’s operatic repertoire encompasses more than 20 roles, including the title characters in Le Nozze di Figaro, Falstaff and Don Pasquale. Helppie teaches at Western Oregon University and serves as director of music at Our Saviors Lutheran Church.

Soprano Christine Welch is on the music faculty at Willamette University, where she directs Voce Femminile and teaches studio voice. She is an active soloist and composer.

The Willamette Master Chorus got its start in 1985 with a performance of the Messiah.

“Now this performance has become a timeless Salem tradition,” Wallace said. “We hope to heighten the Lenten and Easter season for our family and friends.”

Adult tickets are $15, and student and senior tickets are $12. Discounted tickets are available for Willamette students and staff. To purchase tickets, visit www.willamettemasterchorus.org, call TicketsWest at 1-800-992-TIXX or visit any Safeway TicketsWest Center. Purchases through TicketsWest include a handling fee. Tickets may be available at the door. Call (503) 370-6255 or visit www.willamettemasterchorus.org for information.

This event is sponsored in part by the City of Salem’s Transit Occupancy Tax Fund, with media sponsors the Statesman Journal and KGAL Radio 1580.

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Willamette University Musicians to Perform with New Jersey Chorale

The Willamette University Music Department presents its Winter Choral Concert Sunday, March 11, at 3 p.m. in Hudson Hall in the Mary Stuart Rogers Music Center on campus. The free concert will feature Male Ensemble Willamette under the direction of Paul Klemme, Voce Femminile under the direction of Christine Welch Elder, and The College of New Jersey Chorale under the direction of Michael Mendoza.

Male Ensemble Willamette will premiere a composition by Mendoza, “Behold, How Good,” based on text from the Bible’s Psalm 113; “Shout for Joy,” a setting of Psalm 98 composed by Dan Davison; and a seldom-heard Beatles tune, “Yes It Is,” arranged by Willamette junior Michael Murray.

Voce Femminile will present “Sing a New Song,” an a cappella piece by Mendoza, and “Welcome Love: Four Settings of 17th Century Love Poetry” by Lana Walter.

With this concert, The College of New Jersey Chorale begins its weeklong tour of the Pacific Northwest. They will perform “La Guerre” by Clément Janequin, “Prayers of Steel” by Paul Christiansen and the “Songs of Faith” by Eric Whitacre.

The ensemble, conducted by Mendoza, has toured the Eastern United States, Eastern Canada and England. The American Record Guide wrote that they “make a remarkably full-bodied and resonant sound,” while the Trenton Times said the chorale has “breathtaking clarity and warmth.”

Mendoza has choral works published in the American Choral Director’s Association Monograph and elsewhere.

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Willamette University Choral Program Honored

The Willamette University Chamber Choir and Willamette Singers have been selected by the American Choral Directors Association to perform at the organization’s Northwest Regional Convention in Portland in March. Willamette auditioned against universities in Alaska, Washington, Oregon, Montana, Idaho and Wyoming.

Willamette’s Chamber Choir will perform its convention program at the Winter Choral Concert Saturday, Feb. 25, at 7 p.m. in Hudson Hall on the Willamette campus. The concert is free.

“The program will include a wide variety of literature,” Choral Director Wallace Long said. “From ‘Rotala,’ a piece sung in Latvian by composer Juris Karlsons, to the well known ‘Water Night’ by Eric Whitacre, to a marvelous gospel piece by Sean Ivory and Paul Caldwell, ‘John the Revelator,’ the music will be rich and expressive.” Male Ensemble Willamette and Voce Femminile will also be featured.

The Willamette Singers will perform its convention program at the 11th annual “Puttin’ on the Ritz” big band dinner and dance event Friday, March 11, and Saturday, March 12, from 7 to 11 p.m. in the Putnam Student Center on the Willamette campus. Tickets are $34.50 per person or $260 for a table of eight. Tickets may be purchased by calling the Willamette music office at 503-370-6214.

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Willamette University Musicians to Perform; Winter Tour Kickoff

The Willamette University Chamber Choir, Willamette Singers and Willamette Brass Ensemble, under the direction of Wallace Long, will present their Winter Tour Kickoff Concert Saturday, Jan. 7, at 7 p.m. in Hudson Hall at the Rogers Music Center at Willamette University.

Choral ensembles from West Salem High School under the direction Lisa McIntyre and McKay High School under the direction of Gretchen Longwell will also perform. The concert is open to the public and free, although a goodwill donation is encouraged to help students pay for the tour.

The performance will feature a variety of sacred and secular works, both a capella and accompanied. Chamber Choir selections range from the seldom-heard Giovanni Gabrieli motet masterpiece for choir and brass, “Jubilate Deo,” to the well-known Moses Hogan spiritual, “I’m Gonna Sing ‘Til the Spirit Moves in My Heart.”

The Willamette Chamber Choir is a 40-voice ensemble that performs throughout the Northwest. Archbishop Desmond Tutu invited the choir to perform in South Africa in 2004, and music from their South African tour is featured on their fifth CD, “Thula Sizwe: A Celebration of Hope.”

The Willamette Singers is a 17-member vocal jazz ensemble. The Singers’ ninth CD, “One Touch of Heaven,” was released in 2005.

The groups have performed at regional, national and international conventions of the American Choral Directors Association, the Music Educators National Conference, the Oregon Music Educators Association and the International Association of Jazz Educators.

Several Willamette Choir members from the Salem area will be performing in the Concert. Kylie Pine and Leslie Katter from South Salem High School, Minh Pham from McKay High School, Mikki Pomerenke from Sprague High School, Julia Ulshafer from North Salem High School and Darren McCoy from Western Mennonite High School.

2006 Tour Itinerary:
Admission for all concerts is free, but donations are gladly accepted.

Saturday, January 7, 7:00p
Hudson Hall
Willamette University
Tour Kick-Off Concert
Performance: Chamber Choir/Willamette Singers with West Salem HS and McKay HS

Sunday, January 8, 10:30a
First United Methodist Church
1838 SW Jefferson
Portland, OR
Chamber Choir will provide music during the morning service.

Sunday, January 8, 7:00p
First Baptist Church of Lakewood
5400 112th St. SW
Lakewood, WA 98499
Performance: Chamber Choir with Curtis HS and Lakes HS

Monday, January 9, 9:55a
Charles Wright Academy
7723 Chambers Creek Rd. W.
Tacoma, WA 98467
Performance: Willamette Singers

Monday, January 9, 7:00p
Summit Avenue Presbyterian Church
403 Summit Avenue S
Bremerton, WA 98310
Performance: Chamber Choir with South Kitsap HS, Olympic HS and Central Kitsap HS

Tuesday, January 10, 10:00a-11:00a
South Kitsap High School
425 Mitchell Ave
Port Orchard, WA 98366
Performance: Willamette Singers

Tuesday, January 10, 7:00p
Blessed Sacrament Church
5050 Eighth Ave. NE
Seattle, WA 98105
Performance: Chamber Choir with Newport HS and Nathan Hale HS

Wednesday, January 11, 9:00a
Hale High School
10750 30th NE Ave.
Seattle, WA 95125
Performance: Willamette Singers

Wednesday, January 11, 7:00p
Trinity Lutheran Church
6215 196 St. SW
Lynnwood, WA 98036
Performance: Chamber Choir with Mountlake Terrace HS, Woodinville HS and Edmonds Community College

Thursday, January 12, 8:45a
Mountlake Terrace High School
21801 W. 44th Ave.
Mountlake Terrace, WA 98043
Performance: Willamette Singers

Thursday, January 12, 7:00p
Spanaway Lutheran Church
16001 “A” St.
Spanaway, WA 98387
Performance: Chamber Choir with Spanaway Lakes HS and Graham-Kapowsin HS

Friday, January 13, 10:30a
Graham-Kapowsin HS
22100 108th Ave. E
Graham, WA 98338
Performance: Willamette Singers

Friday, January 13, 7:00p
Lutheran Church Of The Good Shepherd
1601 North St. S.E.
Olympia, Washington 98506
Performance: Chamber Choir/ Willamette Singers with River Ridge HS and Olympia HS

Saturday, January 14, 7:00p
First Presbyterian Church
4300 Main St.
Vancouver, WA 98663
Performance: Chamber Choir/Willamette Singers with Battle Ground HS, Camas HS and Prairie High School

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Willamette University Choirs Give Free Public Concerts

The Willamette University Chamber Choir and the Willamette Singers, under the direction of Dr. Wallace H. Long, Jr., will perform the “Winter Tour Kickoff Concert” at the University’s Rogers Music Center, Hudson Hall, Saturday, Jan. 8, at 7 p.m. The public is invited to this free concert.

Choral ensembles from South Salem High School, under the direction Carol Stenson, North Salem High School, under the direction of Kerry Burtis, and McNary High School, under the direction of Paul Mayhew, will also perform.

The concert, the first in a tour that visits 9 western cities, will feature a variety of sacred and secular works, both a cappella and accompanied.

Additional tour venues include:

• The First United Methodist Church, 1165 Monroe Ave. NW, Corvallis, Sunday, Jan. 9, at 8:45 a.m.;
• Peace Memorial Presbyterian Church, 4431 S. Sixth, Klamath Falls, Sunday, Jan. 9, at 7 p.m. with choral ensembles from Henley High School, under the direction of Bonnie Hay, Klamath Union High School, under the direction of Chuck Hamilton, and Mazama High School, under the direction of Gerald Lemieux;
• Mazama High School, 1420 S. Avalon, Klamath Falls, Monday, Jan.10, at 8:30 a.m.;
• Lafayette/Orinda Presbyterian Church, Lafayette, CA., Jan. 10, at 7:30 p.m. with choral ensembles from Acalanes High School, under the direction of Bruce Lengacher, and Miramonte High School, under the direction of Chris Olin;
• Acalanes High School, 1200 Pleasant Hill Rd., Lafayette, CA., Tuesday, Jan. 11, at 10:55 a.m.;
• St. Mary’s Catholic Church, 608 N Church St., Visalia, CA., Tuesday, Jan.11, at 7 p.m. with choral ensembles from Long Beach State University and College of the Sequoias;
• Bel Air Presbyterian Church, 16221 Mulholland Dr., Los Angeles, CA., Wednesday, Jan. 12, at 7 p.m. with choral ensembles from Campbell Hall High School, under the direction of Frank Basile, and Hamilton Academy, under the direction of John Hamilton;
• Anaheim, Thursday, Jan. 13, The Willamette Singers will appear in concert at Disneyland;
• Unity in Marin Church, 600 Palm Dr., Novato, CA., Friday, Jan. 14, at 7 p.m. with choral ensembles from Novato High School, under the direction of Kenneth Gartner, and the San Marin High School, under the direction of Emily Gates.

Willamette University, located in Salem, Oregon was founded in 1842, and is the first university in the West. Willamette is comprised of the College of Liberal Arts, the College of Law, the Atkinson Graduate School of Management and the School of Education. The University has a long tradition of outstanding instrumental and vocal music programs.

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Senior Recital Dec. 1st

Willamette University student and baritone Joshua McCall will present his senior recital of Baroque to 20 th century musical theater and cabaret music Wednesday, Dec. 1, at 7 p.m. in Hudson Hall, Mary Stuart Rogers Music Center, Willamette University. Admission is free.

The recital will include works by Bach, Rossini, Mozart, Chabrier, Sondheim, Bolcom and Coward. Joining McCall will be University faculty member David Ingram, piano, and special guests Willamette graduate Robin Ricard, soprano, and current Willamette University senior Vanessa Terzaghi, dancer.

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Willamette Students Sing for CBS on Christmas Eve

Put together 235 singers, 16 instrumentalists, 14 bell ringers, one giant pipe organ, 26 microphones, six television cameras, miles of cabling and 85 spotlights burning more than 56,000 watts an hour and what do you get? This year’s nationally televised CBS/Hallmark Christmas Eve Special featuring 118 Willamette University students singing in three University choirs.

Local technical crews arrived on Nov. 18 and spent two days stringing lights, building platforms and setting up cameras at the First Presbyterian Church in Salem. The show was taped Nov. 20 and will air Christmas Eve (Dec. 24) in the 11:30 p.m. (10:30 p.m. Central and Mountain Standard Time) timeslot normally reserved for David Letterman. It’s anticipated that at least 2.6 million people will tune in Christmas Eve to hear Willamette’s singers and three other choirs and instrumentalists in the 59-minute program.

The magician behind this musical extravaganza has been Christine Welch, a music instructor at Willamette and director of Voce Femina, Willamette’s 40-voice women’s choir. She is also the musical director at the First Presbyterian Church where she directs the 60-member mixed Chancel Choir. She says coordination was the key in making this mammoth event run smoothly.

“I had this notebook I carried around for weeks,” Welch said in a recent interview. “It contained the answers to everything anyone might ask about this event. I had six different schedules typed up from every group and their accompanying instrumentalists.”

Welch, who joked that CBS stood for “Christine’s Busy Season,” said the biggest challenge was “the chorography, making sure that for these certain minutes I had these people here and for those certain minutes I had those people there.”

Paul Klemme, who directs the Male Ensemble Willamette, says Christine Welch was the “perfect person” to harmoniously bring together 266 voices and instruments. “It takes someone like Christine who has vision and is willing to put in a tremendous amount of energy to organize something like this,” he said. “She’s a consummate musician and has a good feel for what this sort of event needs.”

It was Welch’s job not only to musically prepare her choirs, but to direct five of the six choirs, the bell ringers and the instrumentalists during the concert. The groups had never performed together before. They rehearsed together one Saturday, had a three-hour technical rehearsal and then the television cameras rolled.

Willamette music professor Wallace Long, who directed the university’s mixed-voice Chamber Choir during the performance, said one of the biggest problems was finding enough space for everyone. While the First Presbyterian Church’s sanctuary is relatively large, 266 singers, instruments and a plethora of lighting and taping equipment filled the space quickly. “Physically trying to provide space for musicians like violinists to move without stabbing someone with their bow is really a challenge,” said Wallace. “Christine had to find a place for all the vocalists and instrumentalists during the performance where they could see and hear her and one another. It was a real challenge.”

Wallace’s Chamber Choir, the only group to perform solo, sang an arrangement of “There Will Be Rest.” A challenge for him was fitting the song into the precise 4½-minute time slot. “The song was longer than the time allotted. I had to decide how to carefully move parts of it faster to fit into the time slot.”

Willamette students like Krysta Drechsler, a member of Voce Femina, said they found participating in a nationally televised musical program “really exciting. I’m way excited. I’d never done anything this big.”

Voce Femina sang “Hark the Herald Angels Sing” with the Presbyterian’s mixed-voice choir, accompanied by brass, organ and hand bells.

Drechsler, a junior majoring in English, said the biggest challenge for her was “getting used to the sound. In rehearsal, we’re used to hearing just women’s voices. The sound was completely different with an orchestra and another choir.”

Curtis Bell, who sings low base in Male Ensemble Willamette and the Chamber Choir, said the biggest challenge was “putting the different groups together. There are different conductors with different styles and we’ve been trained to do different things.”

Bell believes he was able to avoid getting too stressed out about being on national television by staying focused. “You have to stay focused on the music and the performance,” he said. “We were able to keep our heads in the music and not get carried away with national TV and all the hype.”

For Willamette music major Alice Jolly, singing in the CBS program was especially important because it will give her a way to share Christmas with her family in Honolulu. “I don’t get to go home for Christmas this year,” she said. “My parents can turn on the TV in Hawaii on Christmas Eve and see me. That’s really special.”

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Willamette Students Sing for CBS on Christmas Eve

Put together 235 singers, 16 instrumentalists, 14 bell ringers, one giant pipe organ, 26 microphones, six television cameras, miles of cabling and 85 spotlights burning more than 56,000 watts an hour and what do you get? This year’s nationally televised CBS/Hallmark Christmas Eve Special featuring 118 Willamette University students singing in three University choirs.

Local technical crews arrived on Nov. 18 and spent two days stringing lights, building platforms and setting up cameras at the First Presbyterian Church in Salem. The show was taped Nov. 20 and will air Christmas Eve (Dec. 24) in the 11:30 p.m. (10:30 p.m. Central and Mountain Standard Time) timeslot normally reserved for David Letterman. It’s anticipated that at least 2.6 million people will tune in Christmas Eve to hear Willamette’s singers and three other choirs and instrumentalists in the 59-minute program.

The magician behind this musical extravaganza has been Christine Welch, a music instructor at Willamette and director of Voce Femina, Willamette’s 40-voice women’s choir. She is also the musical director at the First Presbyterian Church where she directs the 60-member mixed Chancel Choir. She says coordination was the key in making this mammoth event run smoothly.

“I had this notebook I carried around for weeks,” Welch said in a recent interview. “It contained the answers to everything anyone might ask about this event. I had six different schedules typed up from every group and their accompanying instrumentalists.”

Welch, who joked that CBS stood for “Christine’s Busy Season,” said the biggest challenge was “the chorography, making sure that for these certain minutes I had these people here and for those certain minutes I had those people there.”

Paul Klemme, who directs the Male Ensemble Willamette, says Christine Welch was the “perfect person” to harmoniously bring together 266 voices and instruments. “It takes someone like Christine who has vision and is willing to put in a tremendous amount of energy to organize something like this,” he said. “She’s a consummate musician and has a good feel for what this sort of event needs.”

It was Welch’s job not only to musically prepare her choirs, but to direct five of the six choirs, the bell ringers and the instrumentalists during the concert. The groups had never performed together before. They rehearsed together one Saturday, had a three-hour technical rehearsal and then the television cameras rolled.

Willamette music professor Wallace Long, who directed the university’s mixed-voice Chamber Choir during the performance, said one of the biggest problems was finding enough space for everyone. While the First Presbyterian Church’s sanctuary is relatively large, 266 singers, instruments and a plethora of lighting and taping equipment filled the space quickly. “Physically trying to provide space for musicians like violinists to move without stabbing someone with their bow is really a challenge,” said Wallace. “Christine had to find a place for all the vocalists and instrumentalists during the performance where they could see and hear her and one another. It was a real challenge.”

Wallace’s Chamber Choir, the only group to perform solo, sang an arrangement of “There Will Be Rest.” A challenge for him was fitting the song into the precise 4½-minute time slot. “The song was longer than the time allotted. I had to decide how to carefully move parts of it faster to fit into the time slot.”

Willamette students like Krysta Drechsler, a member of Voce Femina, said they found participating in a nationally televised musical program “really exciting. I’m way excited. I’d never done anything this big.”

Voce Femina sang “Hark the Herald Angels Sing” with the Presbyterian’s mixed-voice choir, accompanied by brass, organ and hand bells.

Drechsler, a junior majoring in English, said the biggest challenge for her was “getting used to the sound. In rehearsal, we’re used to hearing just women’s voices. The sound was completely different with an orchestra and another choir.”

Curtis Bell, who sings low base in Male Ensemble Willamette and the Chamber Choir, said the biggest challenge was “putting the different groups together. There are different conductors with different styles and we’ve been trained to do different things.”

Bell believes he was able to avoid getting too stressed out about being on national television by staying focused. “You have to stay focused on the music and the performance,” he said. “We were able to keep our heads in the music and not get carried away with national TV and all the hype.”

For Willamette music major Alice Jolly, singing in the CBS program was especially important because it will give her a way to share Christmas with her family in Honolulu. “I don’t get to go home for Christmas this year,” she said. “My parents can turn on the TV in Hawaii on Christmas Eve and see me. That’s really special.”

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Free Concert January 11th

The Willamette University Chamber Choir and the Willamette Singers, under the direction of Dr. Wallace H. Long Jr., will present their Winter Tour Kickoff Concert at the Rogers Music Center in Hudson Hall at Willamette University Saturday, Jan.11, at 7 p.m.

Choral ensembles from South Salem High School, under the direction of Carol Stenson, and West Salem High School, under the direction of Lisa McIntyre, will also Perform. The concert is free and open to the public.

The Willamette Chamber Choir is a 44-voice ensemble which tours annually throughout the Northwest and gives frequent honorific performances at music conventions and workshops held by the American Choral Directors Association, Music Educators National Conference and Oregon Music Educators Association.

The Willamette Singers is a 15-member ensemble, which explores music particularly suitable to small groups of highly skilled and flexible vocalists. Willamette University is one of the few four-year universities in Oregon that offers experience in vocal jazz.

The Willamette Singers participates in a yearly tour and in recent years has been invited to perform for many regional, national and international conventions of the American Choral Directors Association, Oregon Music Educators Association, Music Educators National Conference, and International Association of Jazz Educators. In February of 2003, The Willamette Singers will travel to New York City to perform for the National Convention of the American Choral Directors Association. Singers’ sixth CD "Where Do You Start" was released last fall.

Several Willamette Choir members from the Salem area will performing in the Saturday concert: Kristin Friesen, Bryn Lynch and Marcella Orwick graduated from South Salem High School; Amy Kerr, (also the current America’s Junior Miss), graduated from McNary High School; Kristi Evans graduated from Sprague High School; Lucas Anderson and Jonathan Westfall graduated from North Salem High School; Rob Arndt graduated from Woodburn High School; and Melissa Smith graduated from Dallas High School.

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Anniversary Concert at Willamette University

Alumnae of Willamette University's renowned vocal jazz group, "The Willamette Singers," return to their alma mater for a 20-year anniversary concert Friday, Sept. 27, at 8:30 p.m. in Smith Auditorium. The concert is free and open to the public.

In celebration of "The Willamette Singers" 20th year under the direction of Dr. Wallace Long, 65 alumnae of the group, representing the classes of 1984 through 2002, return to campus as part of this year’s Homecoming weekend.

Long began directing the group in the fall of 1983. The singers had been known primarily as a madrigal ensemble, but responding to the jazz "explosion" in the Pacific Northwest, the singers evolved into a vocal jazz ensemble. Because Long's primary discipline is classical music, he was committed to the concept that vocal musicians could sing jazz in an authentic style, while maintaining their vocal integrity.

The International Association of Jazz Educators, the Music Educator’s National Conference, and the American Choral Directors Association with invitational performances in New Orleans, Chicago, Indianapolis and Boston have honored the resultant group. Other invitational performances include Tokyo and Hawaii. This spring they will travel to New York City for an honorific performance at the American Choral Directors Association's National Convention.

Of the reunion concert, Long says, “Many remarkable musicians have performed in the group during the past 20 years. It will be wonderful to work with them again".

For more information please contact the Willamette Music Office at (503) 370-6255.

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Master Chorus Concert At Willamette May 4-5

The Willamette Master Chorus presents “Drumming, Singing, and Dancing” under the direction of Dr. Paul Klemme in Smith Auditorium Saturday, May 4, at 7 p.m. and Sunday, May 5, at 3 p.m.

Tickets are $12 for adults and $8 for seniors and students at all Safeway FASTIXX locations, the Willamette University Music Department and Opus One Recordings at 503-362-1788. For ticket and performance information, please call 503-370-8055.

Joining the Master Chorus will be the Portland-based dance troupe BodyVox, a 12-member professional dance company. Salem singers Leslie Eck, Don Ebel and Kevin Helppie will sing the solo roles accompanied by pianists David Ingram and Honey Wilson and a percussion ensemble.

The Willamette Master Chorus is the mid-Willamette valley’s premiere auditioned choral ensemble. Founded in 1984, the group regularly performs with the Salem Chamber Orchestra and has appeared at the International Choral Festival in Missoula, Mt., and the International Cathedral Music Festival in Salisbury, England.

Choreographers Jamey Hampton and Ashley Roland formed BodyVox in 1997. Based in Portland, Hampton and Roland have been honing the cutting edge of contemporary dance for more than two decades. The group has toured throughout the U.S., Italy and Canada.

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Choral Concert at Willamette April 13

The Willamette University choral program will present its last classical concert of this school year Saturday, April 13, at 7 p.m. in Hudson Hall of the Mary Stuart Rogers Music Center at Willamette University. Admission is free.

The program will feature the Chamber Choir, under the direction of Dr. Wallace H. Long Jr.; the Male Ensemble Willamette, under the direction of Dr. Paul Klemme; and the women’s choir, now Voce Femina, directed for the last time by Lisa McIntyre who will assume the new choral directing position at West Salem High School this fall.

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Winter Choral Concert At Willamette University

The Willamette University Chamber Choir, the University’s Women’s Choir and the Male Ensemble Willamette will present the Winter Choral Concert Saturday, Feb. 23, at 7 p.m. in Hudson Hall in the Mary Stuart Rogers Music Center on campus.

The Male Ensemble Willamette is the only male choir in 24 choirs representing six states selected to perform at the American Choral Directors Association Northwest Convention in Tacoma in March.

Tickets at the Music Department Box Office are $3 per person. For credit card ticket purchases, please call 503-370-6255.

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Willamette Choir Groups Tour Northwest

The Willamette University Chamber Choir and the Willamette Singers, under the direction of Dr. Wallace H. Long, Jr., will be presenting their Winter Tour, starting Sunday, Jan. 7 through Saturday, Jan. 13. All concerts are free and open to the public.

Stops on the tour include:

• Sunday, Jan. 7— Willamette University Rogers Music Center, Hudson Hall, 7 p.m.
• Monday, Jan. 8 — Skyview High School, Vancouver, Wash., 9:30 a.m.
• Monday, Jan. 8 — First Evangelical Presbyterian Church, Renton, Wash., 7 p.m.
• Tuesday, Jan. 9 — Cascade High School, Everett, Wash., 8:30 a.m.
• Wednesday, Jan. 10 — St. John Vianney Catholic Church, Kirkland, Wash., 7:30 p.m.
• Thursday, Jan. 11 — Bothell High School, Bothell, Wash., 9 a.m.
• Thursday, Jan. 11 — University Place Presbyterian Church, University Place, Wash., 7:30 p.m.
• Friday, Jan. 12 — Sumner Senior High School, Sumner, Wash., 8:40 a.m.
• Friday, Jan. 12 — First Methodist Church, Tacoma, Wash., 7 p.m.
• Saturday, Jan. 13 — Milwaukie Lutheran Church, Milwaukie, Ore., 7 p.m.

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Willamette Presents An Evening Of Holiday Readings And Carols

Willamette University presents "Christmas in Hudson Hall - A Service of Readings and Carols" on Thursday, Dec. 7 and Friday, Dec. 8 at 8 p.m. in Hudson Hall. Tickets to this event are extremely limited.

This special Christmas tradition combines the Willamette University Male Ensemble, Women's Choir and Chamber Choir in an evening of holiday readings and music.

Only 420 seats will be sold for each evening. General admission tickets are $5. Please call the Willamette Music Department at 503-370-6255 for ticket information.

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Willamette Master Chorus Performs “Magnificence of Christmas” Concert

The Willamette University Master Chorus will perform its holiday concert, "Magnificence of Christmas" on Saturday, Dec. 16 at 7 p.m. and Sunday, Dec. 17 at 3 p.m. Both concerts will be held in Hudson Hall, located in the Mary Stewart Rogers Music Center.

The Willamette Master Chorus offers the gift of holiday choral music featuring Gregorian Chant, Renaissance Christmas Motets and Contemporary Carols, with Brass and Handbell Choir. Beginning with plainsong and chant, the music selection will move to holiday madrigals in a madrigal dinner setting along with music from Renaissance composers such as Dufay, Josquin, Isaac and Gabrielli. A brass ensemble will join the choir for Daniel Pinkham's well-known "Christmas Cantata" and accompany the chorus and audience singing holiday carols at the end of the concert. The award-winning Handbell Choir from the Tualatin Valley Junior Academy, under the direction of Jason Wells, will be featured in solo pieces and with the chorus.

Admission is free to children 17 and under - Willamette Master Choir's Christmas gift to the community. For ticket information, call 503-370-8055.

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