SEMO HOLDS CHOIR AUDITIONS

Auditions for all Southeast Missouri State University choral ensembles next semester are under way, according to Dr. John Egbert, coordinator of choral and vocal studies.

Participation in the university's choral music program is open to all students in all academic disciplines. Private voice lessons also are available to any student who wants more individualized instruction, he said.

Choral ensembles offered by the Department of Music include the University Choir, Chamber Choir, Jazz Choir, Choral Union and Opera Workshop.

Ensemble memberships vary each semester according to vacancies created by class conflict and graduation. An informal audition which does not require students to prepare a solo determines membership, Egbert said.

Interested students should contact Egbert at 651-2342, or sign up on the choir audition sheet posted outside 326 Brandt Music Hall.

The University Choir is the top performing choir at Southeast. The choir has performed across the nation and abroad, and has received invitations to perform for numerous music conventions, including the upcoming American Choral Directors Association Southwestern Divisional Convention, and last year's Missouri Music Educators Association State Convention.

In addition to its regular concerts over the past two years, the University Choir has performed with the Paducah and Nashville Symphony Orchestras, has been invited to perform with the National University Philharmonic Orchestra in Mexico City, and has performed with several renowned American composers.

The Choral Union is open to all University students, faculty and staff and Cape Girardeau area residents. The Choral Union is comprised of singers from all major academic disciplines. Auditions are not required for membership.

Specializing in the performance of significant choral and orchestral music, the Choral Union has performed with the Nashville Symphony Orchestra, and has performed major works by Handel, Vivaldi, Schubert and Rutter with Orchestra.

The Jazz Choir is a vocal jazz ensemble of 12 to 16 singers that performs a range of musical styles sentimental ballads, contemporary jazz, "golden oldies" and blues.

The Chamber Choir is composed of about 25 singers. Unique to the Chamber Choir is its sight-reading program, designed for students wanting improved music literacy skills.

The Opera Workshop is an auditioned ensemble that performs opera scenes. Students perform as soloists and in ensemble in a staged musical experience. This is the only audition in which students are required to prepare a solo. The workshop rehearses Mondays and Wednesdays from 3-5 p.m., and is offered during the spring semester.