Events Search and Views Navigation
February 2015
CONCERT: WITNESS: Let Freedom Ring
Pre-concert conversation with Sounds of Blackness Director Gary Hines and Don Shelby at 3 pm. Celebrating 25 years of WITNESS, VocalEssence salutes Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. with the Grammy Award-winning ensemble Sounds of Blackness. Under the direction of Gary Hines, Sounds of Blackness performs and proclaims the music, culture and history of African Americans to audiences all over the world with uplifting messages of hope, unity, love and peace for all humankind. The VocalEssence Chorus and Sounds of Blackness…
Find out more »March 2015
CONCERT: Radio Hour
Did you know that a radio could transport you to a different universe? With VocalEssence, anything is possible. Jake Heggie, one of the world’s most prominent composers of dramatic vocal music and composer of the opera Dead Man Walking, along with librettist Gene Scheer, have created a new theatrical production titled The Radio Hour which crosses Alice in Wonderland with the golden age of radio in a magical program about the power of singing to shape and give meaning to our lives. The precursor to the…
Find out more »CONCERT: Radio Hour
Did you know that a radio could transport you to a different universe? With VocalEssence, anything is possible. Jake Heggie, one of the world’s most prominent composers of dramatic vocal music and composer of the opera Dead Man Walking, along with librettist Gene Scheer, have created a new theatrical production titled The Radio Hour which crosses Alice in Wonderland with the golden age of radio in a magical program about the power of singing to shape and give meaning to our lives. The precursor to the…
Find out more »CONCERT: Radio Hour
Did you know that a radio could transport you to a different universe? With VocalEssence, anything is possible. Jake Heggie, one of the world’s most prominent composers of dramatic vocal music and composer of the opera Dead Man Walking, along with librettist Gene Scheer, have created a new theatrical production titled The Radio Hour that crosses Alice in Wonderland with the golden age of radio in a magical program about the power of singing to shape and give meaning to our lives. The precursor to the…
Find out more »April 2015
OPEN REHEARSAL: P.D.Q. Bach & Peter Schickele Dress Rehearsal
Advance sales for this event are now closed. Tickets are still available and can be purchased at the door beginning at 6:00 PM. See VocalEssence behind the scenes at the P.D.Q. Bach & Peter Schickele dress rehearsal on Thursday, April 9, 2015. Composer Peter Schickele will join VocalEssence and the U of M Wind Ensemble on stage as we run through the performance (and make a few tweaks). All seating is general admission. VocalEssence Chorus & Ensemble Singers University of Minnesota…
Find out more »CONCERT: P.D.Q. Bach & Peter Schickele Birthday Bash
This performance is sold out. If you would like to buy tickets to the open dress rehearsal, click here. It’s been 50 years since Professor Peter Schickele released P.D.Q. Bach on an unsuspecting musical public. And it’s been 80 years since the professor’s mother released him on a society ill-prepared for such singular genius. And now, because everyone loves a birthday, Professor Schickele has reached back across the decades to explore the damp vaults and dusty attics of Leipzig to…
Find out more »FAMILY CONCERT: Rochester ¡Cantaré! Community Concert
Experience the music of our southern neighbors at a multi-generational fiesta! Prominent Mexican composers work as composers-in-residence with school choirs, community choruses, and VocalEssence to bring the sounds of Mexico to Minnesota. Join us for a family-friendly, bilingual music celebration! Tickets for the ¡Cantaré! Community Concert are free and will be available in the spring of 2015. VocalEssence Chorus Franklin Elementary School Montessori at Franklin Riverside Central Elementary Century High School Concert Choir Mayo High School Concert Choir and Treble…
Find out more »May 2015
FUNDRAISER: Gather at the River with Mark Twain (Matinee)
Online ticket sales for this event are now closed. Tickets are still available and can be purchased at the event beginning at 3:30 pm. Step into the past to support the future of choral music education programs at VocalEssence. Join the VocalEssence Ensemble Singers and guest artist Don Shelby as Mark Twain on the historic Minnesota Centennial Showboat for a celebration of the river. Sip cocktails and enjoy delicious hors d’oeuvres on the Victorian deck and enter a raffle to win fabulous prizes,…
Find out more »FUNDRAISER: Gather at the River with Mark Twain (Evening)
Online ticket sales for this event are now closed. Tickets are still available and can be purchased at the event beginning at 7:00 pm. Step into the past to support the future of choral music education programs at VocalEssence. Join the VocalEssence Ensemble Singers and guest artist Don Shelby as Mark Twain on the historic Minnesota Centennial Showboat for a celebration of the river. Sip cocktails and enjoy delicious hors d’oeuvres on the Victorian deck and enter a raffle to…
Find out more »FAMILY CONCERT: ¡Cantaré! Community Concert 2015
Experience the music of our southern neighbors at a multi-generational fiesta! Prominent Mexican composers work as composers-in-residence with school choirs, community choruses, and VocalEssence to bring the sounds of Mexico to Minnesota. Join us for a family-friendly, bilingual music celebration! Tickets for the ¡Cantaré! Community Concert are free. VocalEssence ChorusAdams Spanish Immersion, St. Paul Blaine High School, BlaineMinnehaha Academy Lower School, Minneapolis Park High School, Cottage Grove Partnership Academy, Richfield Southwest High School, Minneapolis Youth Choir of Our Lady of…
Find out more »June 2015
TOUR: River Songs and Tales with Mark Twain, Tuesday, June 23
Members of the VocalEssence Ensemble Singers and Don Shelby as Mark Twain go on the road to Alexandria, Minnesota to celebrate life on the Mississippi River. Through choral music and the spoken word, VocalEssence takes listeners on a musical journey of the past and present—choral masterpieces, favorite folksongs, traditional spirituals, and Americana—all paired with the words of Mark Twain. VocalEssence Ensemble Singers Don Shelby, actor Tesfa Wondemagegnehu, conductor Sara Pajunen, fiddle Jon Cranney, director
Find out more »TOUR: River Songs and Tales with Mark Twain, Wednesday, June 24
Members of the VocalEssence Ensemble Singers and Don Shelby as Mark Twain go on the road to Alexandria, Minnesota to celebrate life on the Mississippi River. Through choral music and the spoken word, VocalEssence takes listeners on a musical journey of the past and present—choral masterpieces, favorite folksongs, traditional spirituals, and Americana—all paired with the words of Mark Twain. VocalEssence Ensemble Singers Don Shelby, actor Tesfa Wondemagegnehu, conductor Sara Pajunen, fiddle Jon Cranney, director
Find out more »TOUR: River Songs and Tales with Mark Twain, Thursday, June 25
Members of the VocalEssence Ensemble Singers and Don Shelby as Mark Twain go on the road to Alexandria, Minnesota to celebrate life on the Mississippi River. Through choral music and the spoken word, VocalEssence takes listeners on a musical journey of the past and present—choral masterpieces, favorite folksongs, traditional spirituals, and Americana—all paired with the words of Mark Twain. VocalEssence Ensemble Singers Don Shelby, actor Tesfa Wondemagegnehu, conductor Sara Pajunen, fiddle Jon Cranney, director
Find out more »TOUR: River Songs and Tales with Mark Twain, Friday, June 26
Members of the VocalEssence Ensemble Singers and Don Shelby as Mark Twain go on the road to Alexandria, Minnesota to celebrate life on the Mississippi River. Through choral music and the spoken word, VocalEssence takes listeners on a musical journey of the past and present—choral masterpieces, favorite folksongs, traditional spirituals, and Americana—all paired with the words of Mark Twain. VocalEssence Ensemble Singers Don Shelby, actor Tesfa Wondemagegnehu, conductor Sara Pajunen, fiddle Jon Cranney, director
Find out more »TOUR: River Songs and Tales with Mark Twain, Saturday, June 27
Members of the VocalEssence Ensemble Singers and Don Shelby as Mark Twain go on the road to Alexandria, Minnesota to celebrate life on the Mississippi River. Through choral music and the spoken word, VocalEssence takes listeners on a musical journey of the past and present—choral masterpieces, favorite folksongs, traditional spirituals, and Americana—all paired with the words of Mark Twain. VocalEssence Ensemble Singers Don Shelby, actor Tesfa Wondemagegnehu, conductor Sara Pajunen, fiddle Jon Cranney, director
Find out more »