Rowan Choir celebrated the work of Morten Lauridsen

Rowan University’s Concert Choir celebrates the work of one of the most significant choral conductors of the 21^st century in An Evening with Morten Lauridsen on Saturday, April 5, 2008 at 8 pm in Pfleeger Concert Hall.

Under the direction of Dr. Z. Randall Stroope, the Choir is joined by faculty soloists and accompanied by the Rowan University Orchestra, conducted by Salvatore Scarpa. The program includes Lux Aeterna, Dirait-On (from Les Chansons des Roses), Madrigali, Mid-Winter Songs, Sure On This Shining Night, O Magnum Mysterium and A Winter Come (six songs for high voice) featuring faculty members Marian Stieber and Jon Garrison. The performance concludes Lauridsen’s two-day residency on campus.

Lauridsen’s works have been recorded on more than 100 CDs by ensembles such as the Robert Shaw Chorale, Dale Warland and Donald Brinegar Singers, Pacific Chorale, Seattle Pro Musica, Germany’s Nordic Chamber Choir, Finland’s Lumen Val, the Los Angeles Guitar Quartet, the Los Angeles and San Francisco Chamber Singers and the Cleveland, Dallas and San Francisco Symphony choruses. His seven vocal cycles and his series of sacred a cappella motets are performed regularly by distinguished ensembles throughout the world. O Magnum Mysterium, Dirait-on (from Les Chansons des Roses) and O Nata Lux (from Lux Aeterna) are among the all-time best-selling choral octavos. In speaking of Lauridsen's sacred works in his book, Choral Music in the Twentieth Century, musicologist and conductor Nick Strimple described Lauridsen as "the only American composer in history who can be called a mystic…(whose) probing, serene work contains an elusive and indefinable ingredient which leaves the impression that all the questions have been answered.” A recipient of numerous grants, prizes and commissions, Lauridsen chaired the composition department at the USC Thornton School of Music from 1990-2002 and has held residencies as a guest composer/lecturer at more than two dozen universities.

General Admission tickets are $10 in advance ($15 at the door) and Senior/Student tickets are $8 in advance ($12 at the door). For information and reservations, contact the box office at 856-256-4545. Pfleeger Concert Hall is located in Wilson Hall on the campus of Rowan University, Route 322 in Glassboro. For additional information, visit www.rowan.edu/fpa