[184] Heavenly music comes down to earth with MTSU choral concert of ‘Creation’ Nov. 9

MURFREESBORO — Quick: Think of a better way to spend a Sunday afternoon than sitting inside MTSU’s Hinton Hall and immersing yourself in the blended, beautiful music of humans and instruments.

Now make an appointment with yourself, your friends, family, group or organization to attend the Sunday, Nov. 9, performance of Haydn’s “Creation” by the MTSU Concert Chorale and Middle Tennessee Choral Society at 3 p.m.

Tickets for the MTSU Arts production, sponsored by Ascend Federal Credit Union, are $10 per person and available at the door. MTSU faculty, staff and students will be admitted free with valid IDs.

Hinton Hall is located inside MTSU's Wright Music Building; you can find a searchable campus map at http://tinyurl.com/MTSUParking14-15.

“Creation,” an 18th-century oratorio that celebrates the birth of the world as told in the book of Genesis and in Milton’s “Paradise Lost,” will showcase a 120-voice MTSU choir and a 35-piece MTSU orchestra.

The choral groups also are welcoming a trio of guest soloists for this special production:

·       soprano Alice Matlock Clements, an MTSU music alumna and local voice teacher.

·       tenor Drake Dantzler, music professor at Oakland University in Rochester, Michigan.

·       bass John Kramar, a voice professor at East Carolina University School of Music in Greenville, North Carolina.

“We are really thrilled to offer this concert, the first major choral work of the season, to the community,” said Dr. Raphael Bundage, a professor of vocal performance in MTSU's School of Music and Choral Society music director/conductor.

“The story of creation in music is always fascinating. It comes right from the heart of the book of Genesis. Church groups, youth groups, all sorts of groups may enjoy coming to hear our performance. It will be a wonderful outing for any group who wants to hear great music.”

Drs. Adam Clark and Eunbyol Ko, members of the MTSU School of Music faculty, will present an exciting prelude to the Nov. 9 choral concert with their special performance of Mozart's "Piano Concerto No. 10 in E flat.”

The couple will begin the program on two 9-foot baby grand pianos on the Hinton stage, Bundage said, noting that their rendition “will be a unique pairing” with the “Creation” performance.

This Nov. 9 event is launching a busy 2014-15 season for the Middle Tennessee Choral Society, which has adopted “Celebrating the Creative Spirit in Song” as this year’s theme.

The annual performance of Handel’s “Messiah,” set Monday, Dec. 1, marks the 30th anniversary for the group’s presentation of the beloved holiday oratorio.

“Messiah” will be presented beginning at 7 p.m. Dec. 1 at First United Methodist Church, located at 265 W. Thompson Lane. Tickets for that concert also are $10 per person.

“That we’ve presented ‘Messiah’ to the MTSU community and our neighbors for 30 years, I think, is a grand testament to both our choral society and the community,” Bundage said. “We’re so honored to perform it.”

The MTSU “Messiah” production once again will feature a professional orchestra and MTSU student and faculty soloists, he added.

Additional 2014-15 concerts at MTSU include performances of Lehar’s “The Merry Widow” Feb. 19-20 and “Bach and Friends in Concert” March 22.

For more information on this and other concerts in the MTSU School of Music, call 615-898-2493 or visit http://www.mtsumusic.com and click on the "Concert Calendar" link. For details on joining the Middle Tennessee Choral Society, contact Bundage at raphael.bundage@mtsu.edu or 615-898-2849.