On April 3rd at 7:30 pm in the Thorley Recital, SUU’s Opus choirs performed Bach’s Cantata No. 4. The movement was broken up into sections, such as choir, tenor, and bass. Soloists such as Ashley Stackhouse, Kaitlin Marriott, Ashlee Brouwer, and Chris Cheney performed.
Bach’s piece, Christ lag in Todesbanden translated to, “Christ lay in death’s bond,” is beautifully and spiritually composed and sung in German. Christ lag in Todesbanden is a chorale cantata, which means that the text and the music were based on a hymn. In this case, it was based on Martin Luther’s hymn, which was the main Easter hymn in the Lutheran church.
The concert hosted not only Southern Utah University’s choir, but an orchestra made up of other community members.
Madeline Simmerman, a high school student who was part of the orchestra, said regarding the concert: “I loved being a part of this and having the experience. The music is just beautiful.”
The choir performed two other pieces acapella. The first was “Let My Love Be Heard,” by Jake Runestad. This piece was based on a poem by Alfred Noyes and is said to be, “a prayer for love to be heard by those who need it the most.”
The next piece “There is a Balm in Gilead,” was an African American spiritual. It was arranged by Southern Utah University’s very own music professor, Douglas L. Ipson. Trevor Casperson, Claire Robinson, and Angela Clyde performed as the soloists in these pieces.
The next event will be a Student Recital on April 5th at 2:00 pm. The performance is free and will be held in the Thorley Recital Hall.
Story by: Elizabeth Armstrong
elizabeth.grace.armstrong@gmail.com
Photo by: Elizabeth Armstrong
