The Hesston College Bel Canto Singers will perform the program “Meditations and Illuminations” at several locations in Nebraska during a weekend tour. All performances are free and open to the public though a free-will offering will be collected to assist with expenses.
The “Meditations and Illuminations” program, under the direction of Bradley Kauffman, depicts ways people experience music through a diverse repertoire honoring voices from across time and place, dwelling in contemplation (meditations) and discovery (illuminations).
“All music, sacred or secular, contemplative or exuberant, can draw us into a holy contemplation,” said Kauffman. “Music is a threshold where emotion and intellect transport us into God’s presence.”
Members of Bel Canto Singers are selected by competitive audition during the preceding academic year. The roster for 2013-14 has 21 students from nine states and two countries.
Concerts on the weekend tour schedule include:
- 7 p.m., Friday, Feb. 14 at Salem Mennonite Church, rural Shickley
- 7 p.m., Saturday, Feb. 15 at Bellwood Mennonite Church, 502 B Street, Milford
- 10:45 a.m., Sunday, Feb. 16 at First Mennonite Church, 7300 Holdrege, Lincoln
Bel Canto Singers are Rachelle Adrian, Mountain Lake, Minn.; Laura Baker, Protection, Kan.; Mary Bender, Harrisonburg, Va.; Spencer Berning, Newton, Kan.; Josh Booth, Goessel, Kan.; Davis Cook, Goessel, Kan.; Rebecca Eichelberger, Geneva, Neb.; Rachelle Haarer, Goshen, Ind.; Galed Krisjayanta, Surakarta, Indonesia; Havela Lehman, Keizer, Ore.; Matt Lind, Harrisonburg, Va.; Jay Marston, Murphysboro, Ill.; Morgan Martin, New Holland, Pa.; Karli Mast, Hubbard, Ore.; Holly Peters, Hesston, Kan.; Nathanael Ressler, Mount Vernon, Ill.; Rebecca Rhodes, Arthur, Ill.; Jason Schroeder, Harper Kan.; Jeffrey Smoker, Harrisonburg, Va.; Emily Taylor, Inman, Kan.; and Taylor Zehr, Wauseon, Ohio.