Music department to present concert

The Northwestern College Music Department will present a concert showcasing most of its ensembles in a variety of musical styles for Homecoming and Family Weekend on Saturday, Oct. 1, at 7 p.m. in Christ Chapel. The event is free and open to the public.

The Symphonic Band, directed by Dr. Timothy McGarvey, professor of music, will perform three pieces by prominent 20th century composers, including Aaron Copland and Percy Grainger.

“They are very different pieces,” says McGarvey. “We are trying to give people three very different tastes of what they can experience musically.”

The Chamber Orchestra will perform a 20th century suite by Peter Warlock that emulates earlier music but adds what McGarvey calls “some modern surprises.” The Jazz Band, also directed by McGarvey, will play two different jazz styles in pieces by Dave Brubeck and Wynton Marsalis.

The A cappella Choir, directed by Dr. Thomas Holm, professor of music, will sing three diverse pieces in the styles of Renaissance church music, black gospel jazz and Latin American music. The Heritage Singers will perform a composition by Johannes Brahms that Holm says tells a story of “love, heartbreak and rejection.”

The Women’s Choir, directed by Glee Crippin, lecturer in music, will sing Keith Hampton’s Praise His Holy Name and Brad Printz’s Benedicamus Domino.

The concert will feature three student soloists: horn player Aaron Sundet, the 2011 runner-up for the Ritsema Instrumental Scholarship; pianist Yukiko Higashino, 2011 winner of the McGilvra Keyboard Scholarship competition; and vocalist Rachel Plockmeyer, winner of the 2011 Rowenhorst Vocal Scholarship competition.

"This concert will really allow students to demonstrate a high level of musicality for family, friends and alumni,” says Holm.