Goshen College Choirs’ fall concert to offer works from Mozart to world music

October 25, 2011

GOSHEN, Ind. – The Goshen College Choirs will present a full concert of choral music in Sauder Concert Hall on Saturday, Oct. 29 at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $7 for adults and $5 for seniors/students and are available at the Sauder Hall Box Office one hour before the concert. VISA/MasterCard are accepted.

The night will feature the Goshen College Chorale and Men’s Chorus, directed by Scott Hochstetler, assistant professor of music, and the Goshen College Chamber Choir and Women’s World Music Choir, directed by Debra Brubaker, professor of music. The concert will include a wide and varied program of choral music, including world music from Brazil, Estonia, Sweden and the Czech Republic; African-American spirituals; works by Mozart, Brahms, Duruflé and William Byrd; and a selection from Mennonite composer Larry Nickel’s “Requiem for Peace.”

Brubaker teaches in the areas of vocal and choral music. She holds a doctorate of musical arts from the University of Kansas, a master’s of music from the University of Northern Colorado and an undergraduate degree in music from Goshen College. Brubaker was assistant professor of music at Bluffton (Ohio) College for 10 years, and has also taught choir in public schools in Indiana and Colorado.

Since coming to Goshen in 1999, Brubaker has directed the Goshen College Chorale and Chamber Choir, and has created the Women’s World Music Choir, which performed in Grand Rapids (Mich.) at the American Choral Directors Association’s (ACDA) North Central Regional Convention in February 2008. She and her choirs have collaborated and performed with such noted conductors as Alice Parker, Vance George, Donald Neuen, Gregg Smith and Augusta Read Thomas. A focus of Brubaker’s research and teaching explores how the use of singing can become a catalyst for connection between people of differing cultures, faiths and circumstances, also highlighting the role of women as creators and sustainers of art and culture.

Hochstetler teaches in the vocal, choral and opera theater programs. He holds a doctorate of musical arts in choral conducting from Michigan State University, a double master’s of music in conducting and voice from the University of Michigan, and a bachelor of arts degree in music and biology from Goshen College. Under his direction, the Goshen College Men’s Chorus has been selected to perform for the ACDA regional convention in March 2012. He is also the newly appointed director of the St. Joseph Valley Camerata, an area professional choir. Previous appointments include Western Mennonite School (Salem, Ore.), the University of Michigan and Corban College (Salem, Ore.).

The Choral Journal has published his scholarly work on Vaughan Williams, and he is the co-author of the “IPA Pronunciation Guide to Translations and Annotations of Choral Repertoire, German Texts.” As a baritone, he has performed opera and oratorio roles and given recitals in Indiana, Michigan and Oregon.

Editors: For more information about this release, to arrange an interview or request a photo, contact Goshen College Acting News Bureau Coordinator Alysha Bergey Landis at (574) 535-7762 or alyshabl@goshen.edu.

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Goshen College, established in 1894, is a residential Christian liberal arts college rooted in the Anabaptist-Mennonite tradition. The college’s Christ-centered core values – passionate learning, global citizenship, compassionate peacemaking and servant-leadership – prepare students as leaders for the church and world. Recognized for its unique Study-Service Term program, Goshen has earned citations of excellence in Barron’s Best Buys in Education, “Colleges of Distinction,” “Making a Difference College Guide” and U.S.News & World Report‘s “America’s Best Colleges” edition, which named Goshen a “least debt college.” Visit www.goshen.edu.