The Hillsdale College Choir and Chamber choir will be performing free of charge at College Baptist Church at 3 p.m. on April 22. For musical purists, it will be unforgettable. For graduating seniors in choir, it will be cherished.
The choirs will be singing approximately 16 pieces, and all but one piece will be sung a cappella, or without instrumental accompaniment.
“It’s going to be a really nice program, a nice variety,” said James Holleman, professor of music and choir conductor. Choral music has a “unique, beautiful sound,” Holleman said, and singing a cappella gets back to the basics.
“With this concert, I wanted to get back to a core philosophy and core sound.”
That core sound found in a cappella music was the original intent for the Hillsdale choirs, Holleman said, and this particular selection of music will create a solid background that will prepare the choir to sing George Friderick Handel’s Messiah this coming fall.
At the concert, Holleman will recognize the 21 seniors singing their last concert at Hillsdale College.
“It’s a little bittersweet,” said graduating senior Samantha Georgi, who sings soprano in the choir. “I’ve done choir since the 6th grade, so for me this is the last time I’ll be in choir until I’m old. It is a little bit strange.”
Senior baritone Tyler O’Neil said he enjoys the way Holleman runs choir.
“It is not only fun but also serious,” he said, and added that he appreciates the way Holleman frequently has the choir sing Christian music.
“It is great to build devotion through singing,” O’Neil said.
“Music has always been my creative outlet and stress reliever,” graduating senior Sarah Nelson said. Though she is not a music major, she has enjoyed the musical atmosphere at Hillsdale.
“Everybody is really passionate about music here,” she said. “It’s nice to be in a community of people who care about the same thing.”
Members of the choir have rehearsed together, until, Nelson said, it is easy to recognize each other’s voices. The group has also traveled together for competitions, and become close-knit.
“We all care so much about each other,” Nelson said.
Senior Sharon Barrett, who has sung soprano in the Hillsdale College Choir for 10 semesters, said she will miss being part of the group.
“Music is collaborative, and it is very personal. When you spend time making music together, you really bond with them,” Barrett said.
For senior Natalie Doran, leaving choir is a difficult necessity.
“Choir has kind of become my family,” Doran said. “It is time to move on, but it is also kind of sad because these are my best friends I’m leaving. It is sad to leave, but it is time.”
Doran is going to continue her vocal studies as a graduate student at Michigan University, and she said “it is going to be weird” to get used to a new conductor.
Senior tenor Stephen Henreckson has been in choir since the first semester of freshman year, and he says he will miss “the opportunity to make that kind of choral music with good level of talent.”
“It is something I’ve really enjoyed and not sure I’ll find it outside of college,” Henreckson said.
He especially enjoys the “intricacy of vocal harmonies,” found in a cappella music and encouraged his fellow students to attend the concert.
“You don’t get that many opportunities to hear 130 people sing a cappella.”
sgilman@hillsdale.edu