Southeastern Chorale to premiere Centennial Composition at April 28 spring concert

Press Release Date: 04-08-2009

DURANT, Okla. -- The Southeastern Chorale has commissioned a work from internationally acclaimed choral composer David Childs to mark Southeastern Oklahoma State University's Centennial. The piece, titled, "Of Fire And The Rose," will have its world premiere at the Southeastern Chorale spring concert on April 28 in Montgomery Auditorium on the Southeastern Campus. The concert begins at 7:30 p.m., and is free and open to the public.

Funding for the work came from money raised by the Southeastern Chorale and a grant from the Southeastern Centennial Planning Committee.

The commissioned work for the Southeastern Chorale draws its text from Little Gidding, No. 4 of Four Quartets by T.S. Eliot. Stacy Weger, Director of Choral Activities says, "The poetry has meant much to me through the years, and has been shared numerous times with the Southeastern Chorale. There is much in the work that speaks to being curious about the greater universe of which we are but a small part, of the journey each of us embarks upon at birth with its conflicts and resolutions, and the developing deep awareness we are connected through a shared humanity in all its frailty and triumph. There is a great spiritual, almost mystical quality to the work. A key portion of the text ...

"We shall not cease from exploration
And the end of all our exploring
Will be to arrive where we started
And know the place for the first time."

...is but one portion of the text making it an ideal selection to mark Southeastern's Centennial."

Weslee Vance, Vice-President of Southeastern Chorale says, "Of Fire and the Rose speaks to me in the highest musical sense. Knowing that a composer has written a piece with the Southeastern Chorale in mind is very humbling and a great privilege. We intend to honor Dr. Childs by performing this composition to the absolute best of our ability."

The concert will consist of representative choral pieces from each decade of Southeastern's existence, covering everything from a cappella standards to spirituals to the avant garde.

Robert McFadden, Professor of Music, will serve as accompanist for the concert. The event will also feature student conductors Sara Hudson and Weslee Vance. For more information about the concert please contact the Department of Fine Arts at 580-745-2222.

Thanks to grants from Southeastern's Cultural and Scholastic Lectureship Fee Committee, and the Musical Arts Series, David Childs will be in residency on campus to conduct this work for the concert and to work with the Southeastern Chorale. The Chorale rehearsal with Dr. Childs will be on Monday, April 27, from 1-3 p.m. and will be open to the University and community members. The rehearsal will also be in Montgomery Auditorium. Dr. Childs will also head a luncheon roundtable discussion on Tuesday, April 28, in the student union for interested students.

The Southeastern Chorale will perform the world premiere of another David Childs' work when it joins Vanderbilt University in concert at Carnegie Hall in June to present his Requiem. One portion of that work will also be performed in the spring concert.

David N. Childs, a New Zealand native, has a Bachelor's degree in composition and musicology from Canterbury University, Christchurch, New Zealand; a Master of Music degree in conducting from Florida State University, and a Doctorate of Musical Arts degree from Louisiana State University. Dr. Childs serves as Associate Professor of Choral Studies at the Blair School of Music, Vanderbilt University, where he was granted tenure in 2008. He has studied conducting with Dr. Kenneth Fulton, Dr. André Thomas, and Professor Rodney Eichenberger. He has received additional instruction from Helmuth Rilling as a master class conductor at the Oregon Bach Festival.

Dr. Childs' compositions frequently appear at state festivals and workshops, and at American Choral Directors Association state, regional, and national conventions. They are performed in many parts of the world, including Asia, Europe, and the Americas. He has received commissions from around the world, including Japan, New Zealand, and South Africa. He was recently commissioned to compose for the 2009 ACDA High School National Honor Choir. Dr. Childs currently more than 50 choral works in print.

Members of the Chorale are, Bobbie Atteberry, Durant, OK; Jocelyn Batts, Ardmore, OK; Jessica Bradt, McKinney, TX; Cheri Conway, Lone Grove, OK; Maddie Crook, Lone Grove, OK; Clifford Cox, Smithville, OK; Marissa Eddins, Denison, TX; Richard Eick, Carrollton, TX; Charli Jo Haggard, Dickson, OK; Marcus High, Hominy OK; Sara Hudson, Allen, TX; Essie Jefferson, Garland, TX; Courtney Johnson, Durant, OK; Milo Johnston, Lone Grove, OK; Susan King, Durant, OK; Meredith McMillan, Sherman, TX; Kirsten Ogborn, Denison, TX; Sally Pickens, Durant, OK; Kirk Prucha, Comanche, OK; Anthony Riley, Oklahoma City, OK; Matt Rizzo, Lone Grove, OK; Hunter Sitz, Celina, TX; Josh Smith, McAlester, OK; Weslee Vance, Denton, TX; Stefan Walton, Allen,TX; and Jimi Word, Lone Grove, OK.