Concert Chorale to perform fall concert

The Troy University Concert Chorale choir will hold its fall concert at Bush Memorial Baptist Church on Sunday, Nov. 9, at 2:30 p.m.

The concert will feature works by composers such as Eric Barnum, John Beck and Felix Mendelssohn.

Diane Orlofsky, conductor for Concert Chorale, has been the leader of this group for seven years and is excited about the selection for this semester.

Each semester a theme is planned for the music, and this semester the theme is spiritual, which is typically the theme of the fall semester.

The concert is entitled “Invocations and Remembrances,” and focuses on remembering, spirituality and artistic development.

Orlofsky said that this concert will be more than just singing and clapping. It is her hope that this concert will affect not only the audience, but the singers as well.

“The language of music transcends the time period,” said Orlofsky. “It is the same human themes whether it is a remembrance of God, of a loved one or whatever it is.

“It transcends time period, socioeconomic level, everything. It’s the human experience.”

The repertoire ranges from Gregorian chanting to contemporary sounds with everything tying back to the theme of “Invocations and Remembrances.”

Along with Orlofsky, there are two undergraduate conductors who will be conducting a piece of their choosing.

Stephanie Washburn, a senior vocal choral music education major from

Alexander City, will be conducting the piece called “My Flight to Heaven” by Blake R. Henson.

“My piece is a poem by Robert Herrick, and his poems were really about trying to enjoy life and living life to the fullest,” said Washburn. “(It’s) about moving from one part of a journey into the next part.

“I find a lot of parallels with what’s going on with my life now; I’m about to ‘take my flight’ from this journey into a new part of my life; this chapter is closing. I want to have students really learn about music and be good human beings to make the next generation even better than this one.”

Carlton Copeland, a senior vocal choral music education major from Hartford, is also an undergraduate conductor for this concert.

His piece, “I Can Tell the World,” is a traditional spiritual by Moses Hogan.

“ ‘I Can Tell the World’ is about unabashedly proclaiming a message to whoever will listen,” Copeland said. “The text we are exclaiming describes a mighty conqueror who has vanquished our enemies and who has brought joy to our hearts.

“I want to expose the audience to a different choral concert experience. Sometimes we have our own ideas of what these concerts are.”

All three conductors hope to expose the audience to music that they normally would not hear.

The concert is a free event and is open to anyone wanting to attend.