N.Y. choir joins in Logan production of 'Requiem'

In 2009, Craig Jessop, dean of the Caine College of the Arts at Utah State University and director of the American Festival Choir, was invited to conduct the Carnegie High School Honors Choir, which was made up of high school groups from around the country.

They were all outstanding musicians, he says, "but I was blown away by one particular group, Songs of Solomon, a performing choir based in New York's Harlem."

Afterward he talked with the choir's director, Chantel Renee Wright. "I was so impressed. This choir is not sponsored by a school district but is a nonprofit group made up of high school kids from the five boroughs in New York. They have sung all over the world. For her, it's like a ministry."

When Jessop found out that each year the choir does what it calls a "Summer Music Boot Camp," traveling to one location for a two-week period, he said, "You should come to Utah."

One thing led to another, and Songs of Solomon has been having Boot Camp in Logan this summer.

The group has participated in workshops and presented some concerts, "but the most wonderful thing," Jessop says, is that their appearance coincides with the American Festival Chorus and Utah Festival Opera's presentation of Verdi's "Requiem." "We are thrilled to have them join us for that performance; it will be very exciting."

The concerts will take place at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday and Wednesday in the Ellen Eccles Theater in Logan. They will also feature the Utah Festival Orchestra and Utah Festival Opera soloists Jennifer Welch Babidge, Carla Rae Cook, Eric Margiore and Kristopher Irmiter. Tickets range from $11 to $66 and are available at www.ufoc.org or by calling 1-800-262-0074.

Verdi's "Requiem," a musical setting of the Roman Catholic funeral Mass, has long been considered a work of genius, both for its dramatic intensity and its melodic expressiveness, as it explores not only fear and sorrow but also forgiveness and mercy.

The presentation of the "Requiem" begins "a wonderful new era of heightened collaboration" between UFO and USU, says UFO director Michael Ballam. It will allow future productions "that might have otherwise been out of reach."

Founded in 2008, the American Festival Chorus brings together 270 talented singers from a 50-mile radius, serving as an outreach program between town and university.

But it will be very exciting to have the Songs of Solomon group join with them, Jessop says. For the inner city group to visit what is largely rural Utah has been an very exciting element for them, he says.

The group is dedicated to "musical excellence and providing a safe haven for youth ages 13-21." Launched in 2001, the group has appeared with such musical legends as Jessye Norman, Elton John and Gladys Knight.

They will add a lot to the "Requiem," Jessop says. "They are not only superb musicians with outstanding voices, but they also bring a wonderful spirit," Jessop says. "They are a faith-based group, and they add a wonderful spirit of kindness and goodness."

e-mail: carma@desnews.com