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Music ensembles tour Eastern Europe
May 31, 2007
PLU’s Choir of the West and KammerMusikk Orchestra are currently performing internationally on a two-week tour through Bulgaria, Romania and Hungary.
About 80 students are participating in the tour, which left on May 29. The Choir of the West is under the direction of associate professor of music Richard Nance, while KammerMusikk, a chamber orchestra drawn from the membership of the University Symphony Orchestra, is directed by associate music professor Jeffrey Bell-Hanson.
Every two years, at least one of the music department’s ensembles participates in an international tour, Nance said. Just like studying abroad, touring abroad gives students the opportunity to experience the world and different cultures.
“It speaks to the university’s mission of international education and cooperation,” Nance said.
A tour to Eastern Europe is especially relevant to students studying music, Bell-Hanson added. Much of the music that students study and perform is rooted in Eastern European cultures, and on this tour, the ensembles are performing in many historic locations.
“This part of the world is very much a part of the art form,” Bell-Hanson said.
Choir of the West member Scott Fikse said the tour is a “once in a lifetime opportunity,” especially the chance to visit previously inaccessible areas of Eastern Europe. He hopes to build stronger friendships with his traveling companions, while also making connections with those he meets abroad.
Student Emily Herivel is a member of both the choir and the orchestra. To her, the tour offers the chance to explore the world and share the “universal language of music.”
“I hope to gain a better understanding of the world at large and my place in it,” she said.
The ensembles have a jam-packed tour, and performances include separate concerts by each ensemble, a combined program and shared concerts with local music ensembles. Both ensembles will be performing mostly American repertoire, Bell-Hanson said.
Accompanying the choir is university organist Paul Tegels, while faculty member and violinist Maria Ott is accompanying the orchestra.
The tour began in Sofia, Bulgaria, and the group will finish their time in Bulgaria on Tuesday. Next, the ensembles head to Timisoara, Romania, for three days, and then to Budapest, Hungary, for two days. The students return to the United States on June 11.
To view photos from the tour, click here.
The Choir of the West is the premiere choral ensemble at PLU. It was founded in 1927 by Joseph Edwards, and was the third Lutheran college choir to tour in the United States. The choir has toured all over the United States and the world, as well as appearing recently at national conventions of the American Choral Directors Association and the Music Educators National Conference.
The KammerMusikk Orchestra is a chamber orchestra. The name is Norwegian for “chamber music,” which reflects the Norwegian heritage of PLU’s founders.
Learn more about the music department here.
Every two years, at least one of the music department’s ensembles participates in an international tour, Nance said. Just like studying abroad, touring abroad gives students the opportunity to experience the world and different cultures.
“It speaks to the university’s mission of international education and cooperation,” Nance said.
A tour to Eastern Europe is especially relevant to students studying music, Bell-Hanson added. Much of the music that students study and perform is rooted in Eastern European cultures, and on this tour, the ensembles are performing in many historic locations.
“This part of the world is very much a part of the art form,” Bell-Hanson said.
Choir of the West member Scott Fikse said the tour is a “once in a lifetime opportunity,” especially the chance to visit previously inaccessible areas of Eastern Europe. He hopes to build stronger friendships with his traveling companions, while also making connections with those he meets abroad.
Student Emily Herivel is a member of both the choir and the orchestra. To her, the tour offers the chance to explore the world and share the “universal language of music.”
“I hope to gain a better understanding of the world at large and my place in it,” she said.
The ensembles have a jam-packed tour, and performances include separate concerts by each ensemble, a combined program and shared concerts with local music ensembles. Both ensembles will be performing mostly American repertoire, Bell-Hanson said.
Accompanying the choir is university organist Paul Tegels, while faculty member and violinist Maria Ott is accompanying the orchestra.
The tour began in Sofia, Bulgaria, and the group will finish their time in Bulgaria on Tuesday. Next, the ensembles head to Timisoara, Romania, for three days, and then to Budapest, Hungary, for two days. The students return to the United States on June 11.
To view photos from the tour, click here.
The Choir of the West is the premiere choral ensemble at PLU. It was founded in 1927 by Joseph Edwards, and was the third Lutheran college choir to tour in the United States. The choir has toured all over the United States and the world, as well as appearing recently at national conventions of the American Choral Directors Association and the Music Educators National Conference.
The KammerMusikk Orchestra is a chamber orchestra. The name is Norwegian for “chamber music,” which reflects the Norwegian heritage of PLU’s founders.
Learn more about the music department here.