Approximately 185 high school students, representing 17 different schools, will visit Lee’s campus Friday through Saturday to participate in the annual Honor Choir. The event will culminate with a performance on Saturday at 3 p.m. in the Conn Center.
Recommended by their high school choral directors to represent their schools at the event, there will be a Men’s Choir conducted by Dr. Jonathan Rodgers and a Women’s Choir conducted by Mr. Stacey V. Gibbs.
“This is an excellent opportunity for those who are already leaders in the ensembles to hone their skills, and to offer those who are interested in growing their musicianship, a solid learning environment to participate in a performance with some of the best singers from the Southeast,” said Deborah Gouge, choral director at Elizabethton High School. “The experiences we share at Honor Choir weekend breathe new life into our local programs when students bring their excitement back to the classrooms.”
Both choirs will rehearse and perform a variety of selections by composers such as Alex Gartner, Earline Rentz, and Thomas Oliphant. The entire group will merge together at the end of the concert to form a mixed choir which will perform two pieces. The Lee University Choral Union and Chorale, along with the Lee Opera Theatre, will perform with the Honor Choir.
Dr. Rodgers is an assistant professor of choral music Lee’s School of Music. He teaches church music courses as well as a variety of other course offerings including piano and conducting. He also conducts the Ladies of Lee.
Dr. Rodgers is an active pianist, church musician, and arranger. His arrangements have been published with Walton Music and Colla Voce and performed by Mountain Brook and Hoover High Schools in Birmingham, Alabama, the University of Southern Mississippi Southern Chorale, and the Brigham Young University Women’s Chorus.
Mr. Gibbs is a prolific and highly sought after composer and arranger. Best known for arrangements of spirituals, he is highly acclaimed for his ability to infuse new energy into familiar pieces without sacrificing their authenticity or power.
His spirituals have been performed by The United States Air Force Sergeant, The St. Olaf Choir, The Stellenbosch University Choir of South Africa, The Winston-Salem State University Singing Rams, The Wartburg Choir, The University of Southern California (USC) Thornton Chamber Singers, and many other college, university, and high school choral ensembles both domestically and internationally.
This concert is a free, non-ticketed event, and open to the public.
For more information, email Lu Ann Holden at lholden@leeuniversity.edu.