New video, new CD, new concert

Don't miss our newest featured video on our facebook page! This performance of Robert Cundick's "Behold, This Is the Way" is from our most recent tour and is only available on facebook!

A recording of this performance, along with many other wonderful pieces, will be available on our newest CD release, Alleluia.


This CD of mostly pre-released songs suitable for Sunday use will be available soon!

Also, be sure to get your tickets for the 2009 School of Music Scholarship Concert! This concert, on November 20 and 21, will feature the combined choirs and Philharmonic orchestra on the Poulenc "Gloria," Rutter "Gloria," and the Borodin "Polovtsian Dances." Tickets are $5 for students and $10 for general admission. The concert starts at 7:30. Don't miss it!

Double, Double Toil and Trouble!

We have a concert this Friday at 7:30, combined with the A Cappella Choir. In keeping with the season, there will be a few spooky songs on the program, along with our more standard fare. It's sure to be great, so don't miss it!

Tickets are $3 for students, $7 for general, and available from any choir member or at the door. If you buy tickets at the door, be aware that you will be charged an extra service fee.

For more information, visit our homepage!

See you there!

Choral Showcase videos and Facebook fan page

The first concert of the 2009/2010 academic year, the Fall Choral Showcase, is over, and it went great. Here's what a few of the members of the choir have to say about it:

Blythe Enke (Soprano II): “There is no way to truly describe the feeling of performing with the Singers until you're right there, actually doing it... I wasn't prepared for the way I would feel when we walked onto the stage, I was so overcome with emotion that I felt like I wanted to laugh, cry, and be lifted up into the sky all at once... hallelujah!"

Anna Lucero (Alto II): "The music was absolutely phenomenal-I was going to die it was so beautiful!"

Paul Hill (Bass II): "I was really pleased with our performance and I received lots of positive feedback about it. I was told by one person that it was nice for him to hear a concert where everyone was in tune. My mom had tears in her eyes as we finished the Circle of Life and I knew we'd done something special.”

Were you there? Tell us what you thought! Leave a comment.

Miss the concert? Join the University of Utah Singers Facebook fan page to not only keep up on all the latest news and announcements regarding the choir, but also to see videos from this and other performances! Currently, our featured video is Eric Whitacre's "Hope, Faith, Life, Love." More videos can also be viewed on our YouTube page.

Join today!

Choral Showcase coming soon!

The first concert of the 2009-2010 season is just two weeks away: the Choral Showcase!

The concert features the Singers, the A Cappella Choir, and the Women's Choir and comes after all the choirs only being together for about 3 1/2 weeks. It's a crazy, adrenaline-filled few weeks, and the Showcase is the result! It's always a fun concert and gives a great preview of what wonderful things are going to come during the year.

It's Saturday, September 19, at 7:30 PM at Libby Gardner Concert Hall.

Tickets are $3 for students and $7 for general admission. They are available from any choir member, from the Kingsbury Hall box office, or from the box office at Libby Gardner Concert Hall the night of the concert.

Don't miss it!

Tour Videos

Waiting that last month before the next University Singers concert? Why not fill the time with some videos from our European concert tour?

All of the videos from the competition laps of the Marktoberdorf competition are now available on our youtube channel. Videos from the rest of the festival, including the final concert and the prizewinners concert, are forthcoming.

In the meantime, we're also working on adding videos from our concerts throughout the tour. The first of these is Trond Kverno's "Ave Maris Stella" from our concert in the Knights' Hall of Brezice Castle, Slovenia. More videos like this will be coming soon! Keep watching!

Singers over the summer

The school year is over and tour is finished, but that doesn't mean you can't still hear the Singers! Can't get enough of us? Here are a few ways to keep up with us over the summer.

New CD

Did you know we released a new CD? The Cloths of Heaven was released at our Bon Voyage concert the night before we left on tour.


Featuring repertoire from the Singers' 2007-2008 season, this is our ninth release. The CD includes Anton Bruckner's classic motet "Os justi meditabitur sapientiam," Eric Whitacre's beautiful "Five Hebrew Love Songs," and the world premiere of William Hawley's "The Cloths of Heaven," which was commissioned by the choir. Choral music fans will also find spirituals, gospel music, and sacred and secular music from all over the world.

You can buy it here. Don't worry: the order form will be updated soon! Sound samples will also be available soon here.

Competition Videos

Wish you could've heard us at competition? Now you can! Videos from our performances at Martkoberdorf are being uploaded onto our Youtube channel. There are currently six videos available with more to come!

iTunes

Don't forget that all of our live performances are available for free download on iTunes. You can also purchase our CDs from iTunes. Recordings from many of our tour performances and the competition are forthcoming---keep watching!

And of course, don't forget to keep up with us on facebook!

Water Passion Reviews

The reviews are in! And they are stellar. Here's just a small taste of what people have to say about the Water Passion:

"I can't quite believe what I heard tonight. It was so touching and beautiful. Thank you for giving this wonderful gift of a concert to us." --Karen Taylor, audience member

"Brady Allred presented the work with the University of Utah Singers and A Cappella Choir on Friday night in the Libby Gardner Concert Hall. To say that the work was fascinating merely scratches the surface. . . . There is no preparation in Western culture for the moving experience that awaits the listener during the chilling betrayal scene or the serenity of the concluding moments. At first uncomfortable, the music eventually permeates the being and leads to an ultimately moving experience." --The Salt Lake Tribune

"I want to thank you again for the AMAZING performance of Tan Dun's Water Passion this weekend. I thought about it - and am still - the rest of the weekend and told as many people as I could to go on Saturday night. Ken and I just marveled at the quality of the production and felt incredibly fortunate to have been in the audience. Our daughter Ruby told us this had been the most memorable performance of her life and we could certainly see why. Thank you, thank you, and the School of Music for one of the most compelling, captivating, and beautiful musical events I have ever seen/heard. This was fabulous!" --Donna White, audience member and Chair of the UU Department of Modern Dance

"And hypnotic is exactly what "Water Passion" is. Tan uses quite simple means to capture the emotional impact the story of Christ's crucifixion has. A violin, cello, synthesizer and three sets of percussion join a large chorus in bringing this story to life. Of course, the work needs the right conductor to invigorate the music and capture its soul. And Allred did just that. With his perceptive direction he made Tan's 'Water Passion' speak to the audience. The listener felt the tenderness of Jesus, the anger of the mob and the horror of Christ's death on the cross. Allred's interpretative talents were put to the test with this work, and he passed with flying colors." --Deseret News

"My wife and I attended the performance of this work last week and wanted to thank you so much for bringing it to our community. We were both overwhelmed with it. I have seen many many concerts, by some of the world's finest and most famous musicians; however, the Water Passion concert you orchestrated was the best musical performance I've ever witnessed. Thank you and all the performers for their hard work and discipline, and thank you for bringing such a fascinating work to SLC. With the exception of Mahler's 2nd, I don't think I've heard a more compelling work on the life of Christ. But as great as the music is, it wouldn't have been half as interesting without the passion, enthusiasm and excellence you paired with it. Thank you once again and keep up the good work, what you do is a treasure to our city." --Eric Wadley, audience member

What did you think? Tell us! Leave a comment.

U of U Singers on iTunes U

Have you ever wanted access to more of the U of U Singers than you ever thought possible?

Are you feeling down that you missed our last concert? (Which was awesome, by the way.)

Are you a poor college student and can't afford our killer CD's?

Well have we got news for you...

The University of Utah Singers are now an official fixture on iTunes U, making ALL of our repertoire and ALL of our live recordings available for U!

As of today we've uploaded all of our live recordings from the '08-'09 academic year, but soon enough our magic recording guru Dan will have everything the UUS and a lot of the other great ensembles at the U have EVER done since concert #1 in September of '03. WOW.

Remember the beautiful beast that was Belshazzar's Feast? The awesomeness of Monteverdi's Vespers? Want to hear what we were up to on our last European tour?

You can! Visit us at iTunes U and see what we're talking about!

Want more info? Visit http://singers.utah.edu or shoot us an email at universityofutahsingers@gmail.com

Does this tickle your fancy?

Does this tick you off?

Let us know... Comment!

U of U CFAC 60th Anniversary, Bobby McFerrin

Looking for a reason to celebrate? How about the University of Utah College of Fine Arts' 60th anniversary!

Following a whole week of events (beginning with the exhilarating Bobby McFerrin workshop/concert), this weekend the U of U Singers will join other Fine Arts students at the University of Utah in a celebratory concert Saturday night at Kingsbury Hall. Including music, theater, and dance performances, this concert should be a great time.

Here are the details:

Friday, March 13 -- 8:00 PM -- Kingsbury Hall

Tickets are $30 General, $20 Staff/Faculty, and $10 Students

They can be purchased at www.kingsburyhall.org or at 801-581-7100

On that note, the Bobby McFerrin workshop/concert was a BLAST! In addition to the other vocal students at the U, the U of U Singers all attended a workshop with Mr. McFerrin where we got to hear him speak his genius mind on music, life, and what it means to be an artist.

(Oh, and we heard his amazing singing, too!)

I must say, for me the true highlight was when two of UUS's very own members were able to get up and jam with the legendary artist!

Did you attend the workshop?

Are you a fan of Bobby McFerrin and want to gush?

Have something else to say that's completely off topic??

Feel free to comment!

Want more information? Visit http://singers.utah.edu