Menomonie – On April 26 and 27, The Menomonie Singers will perform Vivaldi’s Gloria and other selections by Eric Whitacre, Elaine Hagenberg, Rupert Lang, Leonard Bernstein, and an Alice Parker/Robert Shaw arrangement. The Gloria will be accompanied by local musicians.

The same program will be held at two locations: Lutheran Church of the Good Shepherd in Eau Claire on Sat, April 26 at 2 p.m; and Our Savior’s Lutheran Church in Menomonie on Sun, April 27 at 2 p.m. The suggested donation is $10.

The Vivaldi Gloria, one of three Glorias by Antonio Vivaldi, was composed possibly in 1715, and is a sacred work. It is made up of 12 movements or sections, which contain choral, solo or small ensemble singing in Latin.

Eric Whitacre’s Sing Gently evokes the yearning and gratitude of singing together especially in difficult times. The piece was written in 2020 when many choirs were reduced to filming themselves singing a single part of a piece, and then uploading their video to a platform which would then put be together for a single performance of the work; 17,572 singers from 129 countries came together to perform Sing Gently.

Sara Teasdale’s poem, Refuge, is featured in Elaine Hagenberg’s choral work of the same name; the piece brings an inspiring message of gratitude that singing can become a refuge, and as long as one can sing, one is free.

The uplifting choral work, Make Our Garden Grow, by Leonard Bernstein, from the musical, Candide, caps the Singers’ program. Its message is one of appreciation, and that we will do the best we can in difficult times.

The choir is looking for new members. Interested singers should contact Juliana Schmidt, Executive Director and founder, at [email protected]. Auditions will be held in August with fall rehearsals beginning shortly afterwards.

Visit us on our website at www.themenomoniesingers.org or on Facebook.