Luther College Nordic Choir to perform Jan. 15 in Galesburg

Luther College Nordic Choir, one of the top college choirs in the nation, will perform Saturday, Jan. 15, 7:30 p.m. at Central Congregational Church, 60 Public Square, Galesburg,.

The performance by the 64-member Nordic Choir is open to the public. Ticket price is $12 for adults, no charge for students. For tickets, call (309) 342-8143.

Nordic Choir, founded in 1946, enjoys national and international acclaim as a premier collegiate choral ensemble in the United States.

The 2011 Nordic Choir tour will include a cappella works "Hosanna to the Son of David," by Orlando Gibbons, "O Sacrum Convivium" by Thomas Tallis, "Caritas Et Amor" by Z. Randall Stroope, "Richte Mich, Gott" by Felix Mendelssohn and "Sanctus" from "Messe" by Francis Poulenc. 

The program has works for choir and organ, featuring Gregory Peterson, Luther organ professor, including "Festival Te Deum" by Benjamin Britten, "Like as the hart desireth the waterbrooks" by Herbert Howells and "Lass dich nur nichts nicht dauren" by Johannes Brahms. 

Luther voice faculty members Karen Kanakis, soprano, and Jacob Lassetter, baritone, are featured soloists on this year's tour program. 

Folk songs and spirituals will round out the choral program, promising something for every listener.

The concert is part of the Nordic Choir's tour of the Upper Midwest. The choir tours annually and has performed around the world, appearing in Norway, England, Germany, Russia, Poland, Hungary, Romania, the Baltic countries, Mexico and the Caribbean. Nordic Choir has also appeared throughout the United States, performing in well-known concert halls as Lincoln Center in New York and the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C.

Allen Hightower is the conductor of the Nordic Choir, director of choral activities and professor of music at Luther. The previous conductor of the Nordic Choir, Craig Arnold, followed the 57-year tenure of Weston Noble.

Luther is home to one of the largest collegiate music programs in the world with six choirs, three bands, three orchestras, two jazz bands and numerous chamber ensembles, totaling nearly 1,000 student musicians.

Luther's students perform in large ensembles, faculty-coached chamber groups, private lessons and master classes. More than 350 music majors study music theory/ear training, history, education, composition, church music and performance.