Newnan's Masterworks Community Chorale to Host Annual Spring Concert in April

By Joan Doggrell

Newnan's Masterworks Community Chorale is holding its annual spring concert on April 17, 3:00 pm, at the Centre for the Performing and Visual Arts. Their feature selection is "Requiem for the Living," written by Dan Forrest in 2013. This forty-minute chorale, accompanied by organ and chamber orchestra, has been performed on five continents and multiple times at Carnegie Hall.

Traditionally, a requiem is a prayer for the rest of the deceased. The "Requiem for the Living" is a prayer for those who still struggle with pain and sorrow and need rest from the hurried pace of today.

Other pieces by modern day composers include music by Robert Shaw, Alice Parker, Daniel Elder, Moses Hogan, Eric Whitacre and others. Selections include Eric Whitacre's "This Marriage," Daniel Elder's "Lullaby" and "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star," plus Dan Forrest's "Goodnight Sweet Heart."

Composer Alice Parker, who studied choral conducting with Robert Shaw at the Juilliard School, has written many arrangements in cooperation with Shaw. Masterworks is performing a Shaw-Parker arrangement of "Saints Bound for Heaven," a traditional hymn.

The concert will also feature the women's ensemble, Ayr, the group that sang in Ayr, Scotland, on a cultural exchange two years ago. The pieces they are singing are "For the Beauty of the Earth," arranged by Philip Stopford; "I'm Gonna Sing," by Andre J. Thomas; and "The Storm is Passing Over," arranged by Barbara W. Baker.

David Kinrade, conductor and accompanist for Masterworks, has sung with Robert Shaw in the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra and Chorus, as have several other members of Masterworks. They have never forgotten his insistence on clearly projected texts. Under Bizarth's and Kinrade's direction, Masterworks' performances demonstrate that Shaw's standard of excellence lives on.

All tickets are $15 at the door or may be purchased at the main office of the Centre before the concert. Tickets for students with ID are $5.00, and children six and under are free.

Are you looking for a group that performs challenging contemporary and traditional music? Auditioning for the 2016-17 Masterworks Chorale season will take place during May and June. Information about the requirements for auditions can be found on the Masterworks website masterworkscommunitychorale.com. To make an appointment for an audition, call 770-846-8278 or email kbizarth@numail.org.