S.L. Choral Artists to begin institute

The Salt Lake Choral Artists will be kicking off the group's third annual summer choral institute starting Monday and running through Aug. 15.

The institute is open to people of all ages and musical backgrounds and is divided into nine sessions.

Led by Brady Allred, SLCA's music director, the various sessions will explore a wide range of choral music. People can sign up for one or several sessions.

One session will be a weeklong course that focuses on sacred and secular choral music by Utah composers in collaboration with the Madeleine Choir School. There also will be a high school choir retreat the weekend of Aug. 13-15. Each session ends with a concert in Libby Gardner Concert Hall that's free and open to the public.

Allred is an internationally recognized conductor who adjudicates choral competitions and leads conducting workshops in the United States and Europe. And as part of this summer's choral institute, Allred will be leading two workshops in July, one from July 22-26 for beginning to intermediate conductors, the other from July 13-17 for advanced conductors.

Tuition fees vary for each session. For more information, log on to SLCA's Web site at saltlakechoralartists.org, or e-mail summerchoralinstitute@gmail.com, or call 801-232-7521 or 801-587-9377.

Below is a rundown of the sessions. Unless otherwise noted, all rehearsals take place in Room 270 in David Gardner Hall and concerts in Libby Gardner Concert Hall on the University of Utah campus.

June 25-27: "God Bless America: Patriotic Music From the USA," with the 23rd Army Band.

July 7: "An Evening With Rodgers and Hammerstein."

July 9-11: "Girls' Night Out: Choral Music for Women," featuring music for treble voices.

July 14: "Mack Wilberg's Requiem."

July 13-19: "Utah Composers: Sacred and Secular Choral Music by Composers From Utah," including music by Marie Nelson Bennett and Murray Boren; with the Madeleine Choir School; rehearsals at the Cathedral of the Madeleine (children's and youth choirs) and David Gardner Hall (adult choir).

Aug. 4: "John Rutter's Magnificat."

Aug. 6-8: "John Rutter Psalmfest With the SLCA Chamber Choir and Orchestra."

Aug. 11: "Season Preview of SLCA 2009-10," featuring selections from Rachmaninoff's "Vespers," Morten Lauridsen's "Lux Aeterna" and songs by the Beatles.

Aug. 13-15: "High School Chamber Choir/Madrigal Retreat Weekend."

E-mail: ereichel@desnews.com