05/2/08

Baker choir members will come together Sunday to raise their voices in celebration of the university’s sesquicentennial and the end of the semester.

The university singers, concert choir and chamber singers will all be joining together for the final choir concert of the year forming the Voices of Spring concert at 7:30 p.m. Sunday at the Baldwin First United Methodist Church.

“It used to be called Spring Vespers, but this is not a church or only religious or sacred songs,” Professor of Music John Buehler said.

The diversion from sacred songs was specifically chosen for this year.

“Baker has commissioned a piece in honor of the 150th celebration,” Buehler said.

The school commissioned Kansas composer John Leavitt to create a musical piece with orchestral accompaniment for the spring concert.

“Baker commissioned him to compose a piece and left him to his work,” Buehler said. “He had written two.”

The two songs will be premiered at the concert. His first piece, “Praise the Lord!,” will begin the evening and his second piece, “Celtic Prayer,” will end the performance.

“He writes in a style that’s very popular,” Buehler said. “I expect that these pieces will be widely performed after this concert.”

Many members of the choir were happy to hear they were going to sing pieces composed by Leavitt.

“It’s kind of cool that he wrote the songs for the college,” senior Jared Weseloh said. “It’s also cool he’s coming to watch.”

The song selection has a mix of songs ranging from Latin and Greek, to English.

“The songs are harmonically and musically descriptive,” Buehler said. “There’ll be a lot of easy listening. All of these will be significant pieces.”

One 57-page piece of music has some singers worried.

“It’s going to be a marathon,” sophomore Rachael Moon said. “We have to sing ‘Requiem’ by John Rutter.”

Despite the daunting pieces, many of the singers still think they are ready for the performance.

“It sounds like we’re more prepared than other semesters,” Weseloh said.