New Vocal Ensemble Offers Scholarships for Audition
PDF Katie Esposito, News Editor
Pictured above by Shannon Kozak: Singers rehearse in Ives Hall.
Chamber Choir will replace Vocal Jazz Ensemble for the spring 2013 semester. The music department will hold auditions for Chamber Choir and choral scholarships Oct. 29 from 4-7 p.m. in Ives Recital Hall in the Fine Arts building.
Chamber Choir will perform a wide variety of choral music, and all singers will be auditioned. This group is only available to Lewis students and will rehearse Monday and Wednesday afternoons from 4-5:15 p.m. beginning next semester.
The music department will award 12 choral scholarships of $500 each semester. The scholarships will be awarded based on an audition for the director and the faculty of the department. Students must register for Chamber Choir (14-102) to be eligible for the scholarship. Students who sign up for the class but do not audition for the scholarship will still be contacted by the director to meet briefly before the semester break, according to music professor Jeremy Landig, who will direct the choir.
“We’re hoping it will be an experience that feeds the mind, heart and spirit,” said Landig. “I’d like it to be one of those defining collegiate experiences that keep its members returning year after year, and forming a legacy and an extended family for the singers.”
Landig believes the scholarships will attract great singers from the Lewis student body, but he said he hopes students will want to participate even without receiving the scholarship. He hopes to have about 20 to 30 singers to start.
Auditions will last for 10 minutes, and students should bring a short resume of their vocal and choral training and experience. Students should also bring a prepared solo to sing for the judges. Songs in the classical, folk or other art music traditions are preferred, but Broadway songs are also acceptable. Students will be asked to sing a warm-up to demonstrate their high and low voice ranges. Candidates who have experience in sight-singing may be asked to sight-read a short passage.
If students do not have a voice teacher and are looking for a short song to demonstrate their singing, sheet music files are available on 8notes.com. The sheet music images can be viewed and printed without charge. It is only necessary to sing one verse, though students may choose to sing more. Students must also bring a copy of the music to their audition.
According to Landig, the group’s future plans are “to become a group that represents the best spirit of the university, to sing many styles of music well and to put Lewis University on the map in new ways.”
To schedule an audition, students must contact Landig at landigje@lewisu.edu.
About the Author
Katie Esposito is the News Editor for the Flyer. She is a Senior English major with minors in Marketing and Public Relations. Also, Esposito works as the Communications and Media Editor for The Jet Fuel Review.
