FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 23, 2008
Contact: Jessica Wong
(662) 329-7119

MUW Chorale to perform at Carnegie Hall

COLUMBUS, Miss. - Mississippi University for Women’s Chorale will
perform Mozart’s “Requiem” at Carnegie Hall in New York on Sunday,
May 11 at 2 p.m.

Mid America Productions of New York City is sponsoring the performance,
and MUW’s group will join a mass choir consisting of several choirs from the Birmingham, Ala., area under the direction of Terre Johnson. 

The weekend prior to the trip, the MUW Chorale will perform the “Requiem” under Johnson in Birmingham with the other choirs. The Alabama Symphony will play for this concert.

Dr. Debra Atkinson, MUW director of choral activities and assistant professor of music education, said, “Mr. Johnson felt that it would be a good idea for us to join those choirs in their Birmingham performance so that we would be accustomed to his conducting before we reach New York.”

This will be the MUW Chorale’s second performance in New York. The first was several years ago under the direction of Dr. Bruce Lesley. This second opportunity arose when Dr. Atkinson searched for different ways the students could experience how it would be to perform with a mass choir while accompanied by a symphony orchestra.

“Since we have such a small number of men here, it is difficult to do major works. This company, Mid America Productions, specializes in bringing choirs from all over the country together to perform major works with a symphony orchestra in Carnegie Hall. It just seemed like a perfect fit for our needs,” she said.

In addition to the Birmingham choirs, groups from Mississippi, Kentucky
and New Jersey will be performing, totaling eight choirs. Preceding the
Sunday performance in New York, the MUW Chorale will rehearse on Friday and Saturday and have an opportunity to go sightseeing and attend
Broadway shows.

The students have provided a majority of the funds and have paid two-thirds of the trip themselves.

“We are working very hard to promote the performing arts here at MUW. It is extremely important for our students to experience music and theater in other parts of Mississippi and in other parts of the country. Our goal is to give these students the tools they will need to be successful when they leave the W and go out into the real world,” Atkinson said.

The Chorale performs a variety of styles of music from many different periods of music history.

“We try to perform works of major composers from earlier periods as well as the newest compositions that are being published today,” she added.

Anyone on campus is eligible to be a member of the choral. However, they must sing an audition which tests their ability to read parts and sight sing. Students do not need to be music majors, but should be able to read music. Individuals interested in auditioning next fall, should contact Atkinson at datkinson@as.muw.edu or call (662) 329-7430.