Coker Singers on the big Stage

photo caption -- Coker Singers perform at Kalmia Gardens during Earth Day 2010.

Dr. Will Carswell, director of the Coker Singers and the Coker Chamber Singers announced this afternoon that the Singers will be performing next April with the South Carolina Philharmonic Orchestra. This ishttp://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gif going to be a tremendous honor for both the Singers and the College.http://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gif

This is the announcement that Dr. Carswell shared:

Colleagues,

I wanted to share some exciting news with you. Yesterday the Coker Singers were officially invited to join the South Carolina Philharmonic Orchestra in a performance of Beethoven's 9th Symphony next season. The April 2012 concert is the season finale for the SC Philharmonic and is sure to be a sell-out. This is a rare opportunity for our students to perform a monumental work in the history of Western classical music. And it's pretty cool for me too since I have never had the chance to prepare this work!

The performance next April will mark the fifth time the Coker Singers have performed with the SC Philharmonic since 2006 and the ONLY college or university choir to have sung with them during that time. Congratulations singers!

Best,
Will Carswell

William Carswell, D.M.A.
Associate Professor of Music
Director of Choral and Vocal Studies

A Coker Christmas

Twenty four days until Christmas but the feeling of this special holiday doesn't get much stronger than it did this evening at St. Batholomew's in Hartsville, S.C. Will Carswell conducted the Coker Chamber Singers in "A Coker Christmas," powerful music of the season that made you think as well as feel - an awesome combination that demonstrates the power wielded by those who write and make music.

This is no review. I don't know music. I do know feeling. I have a pretty fair handle on competence when displayed by others. I have more than a little appreciation for the hard work that goes into a superior performance. Those in the sanctuary this evening will likely echo the sentiments that we witnessed a great performance by the 16 members of the Coker Chamber Singers, their conductor and the accompanists.

There were several excellent pieces but as Amesha Johnson stood silhouetted in front of the reflected cross singing "...we didn't know 'twas you," it would have been difficult to find dry eyes in the house.

The program, which is also being performed in Darlington on Tuesday, December 2 at St. Matthew's Episcopal Church, consisted of:
** I Saw a New Heaven and a New Earth -- PeterR. Hallock (Tiffany Ross - alto solo
** Never weather-beaten sail -- Charles Wood
** And the Glory of the Lord from Messiah -- George Frideric Handel
** Magnificat -- Arvo Part -- Avery Bateman - soprano solo
** A Christmas Carol -- Charles Ives
** Glory to God in the Highest -- Randall Thompson
** Before the Marvel of This Night -- Carl Schalk -- Allyson Osborne on flute
** Dona Nobis Pacem (mvt. 6 finale) -- Ralph Vaughan-Williams
Amesha Johnson, soprano, Tyler Edwards, baritone
** Offertory -- Noel -- Claude-Benigne Balbastre
** How Far is it to Bethelem? -- Geoffrey Shaw
** Here is the Little Door -- Herbert Howells
** My Dancing Day -- arr. Gerald Near
** Sweet Little Jesus Boy -- Robert Macgimsey -- Amesha Johnson soprano
** Carol of the Bells -- arr Peter Wilhousky
** Silent Night -- arr. Paul Sjolund -- Ashley West - alto soprano, Allyson Osborne flute
** I Believe This is Jesus, -- Undine Smith Moore -- Kyle Berry, tenor

Dr. William Carsell is the Conductor
Ronda Wilkes McElveen is the accompanist

The Coker Chamber Singers include:
Avery Bateman - Columbia
Amesha Johnson -- Florence
Breonna Payne -- Sumter
Alto --
Taylor Adams -- Union
Rachel Buchanan -- Sumter
Tiffany Ross -- Sumter
Ashley West -- Charleston
Tenor
Kyle Berry -- Conway
Martin Ketter -- Hartsville
Dustin Moree -- Hartsville
Julio Ruiz -- Greenville
Bass
Tim Dupre -- Greenville
Tyler Edwqrds -- Clemson
Adam Johnson -- Loris
Josh McKenny -- Sumter
Robert O'Hara -- North Augusta

Thinking about assessment...

Assessment is a major element of a college campus. Today, I was thinking a good deal about assessment as we did the final presentations in my Mass Communication class. We only had five minutes per presentation and the ONLY is important here. Ricardo started off the presentations with his summary of a paper on the I-Phone. That started discussion that was moving a five-minute presentation to almost double and we had a lot of presentations left. Kimberly then used a video montage to begin a discussion of her paper, which covered product placement in music videos. The videos grabbed attention and then the product got attention and the discussion started again. Often during the semester I have wished to spark such discussion among the class and today, as it was focusing on key concepts, I had to do the unthinkable and say -- "Sorry" we have to get everyone in and there isn't time. Obviously, the next time I will have to plan better because the discussion was on target and on task and I hated to have it end. Often, I feel that way about the semester in lots of my classes.

Later today there was another type of 'assesment' as the Dance Department and Theater Department held an "Informal" demonstrating some of the concepts that students had been working on in various classes throughout the semester and some of the other groups and talents on campus. The Dance Informal is always a fun, entertaining event that provides some on-stage experience and a chance for both class and personal assessment. Maybe I need to start inviting people to the final speeches from Speech Class??



And, last evening the Coker Singers performed in their Christmas Program, which was a masterful delight. I have snippet of video from this "Celebrate the Season" performance event but the video sound quality is so BADDDD it would not be fair to the group to use it. The Singers were fantastic.

And, while on the topic of assessment, this is the final week of the semester with tomorrow the final day of classes with exams beginning Saturday morning. Always a paper due, always a test to take, always an impression to make -- college may not be that different from the real world.