Manfest, an event that focuses on music suited to the male vocal range, will showcase 14 choir groups from Western Washington on Thursday, Jan. 14. Students, grades 8 through 12, will perform three pieces of music during the first half of the concert and Seattle a cappella group, Groove For Thought, will perform during the second half. The show begins at 7 p.m. in Corbet Theatre.
The award-winning choirs of Timberline and Olympia High Schools will perform along with groups from Tumwater, Black Hills, Montesano, Tenino, Mossyrock, Chehalis, Aberdeen, Shelton, Centralia, Capitol, Onalaska, and North Thurston High Schools.
“The title (of the event) was chosen because there have been many of these before in the choral music world,” said Music Department Head Dr. Donna Huffman.
While accompanists, performers and conductors are all male, Manfest is meant not to exclude females but instead to encourage the minority in an extremely female-dominated field and expose audiences to underrepresented talent.
“Most choirs have a very tough time getting men to sing,” said Dr. Huffman.
The concert is also a student workshop. Performers will begin their day at CC at 8 a.m. and rehearse for two hours with Terry Shaw, music director of the Olympic Choral Society and guest conductor for the event. Four students will also rehearse for a solo performance under the direction of Brian Galante, assistant director of choral activities at Pacific Lutheran University.
Dan Schwartz, Centralia alumnus and Olympia High School music director, will also be a guest conductor.
The chorus will rehearse their music during the day and perform in the concert at night. They will sing Let All Men Sing by Keith Christopher and directed by Dan Schwartz, Workin’, a medley arranged by Audrey Snyder, including Working in the Coal Mine, I’ve Been Working on the Railroad, Big Bad John, and Sixteen Tons, also directed by Dan Schwartz, and Grace by Mark Hayes and directed by Terry Shaw.
Pro Musica sponsors the event and all are welcome to attend. Tickets can be purchased immediately prior to the event for $5 or by donating two cans of food to benefit the local food bank.
The music department is also active in local elementary schools in a musical outreach capacity. The Jazz band will perform on Tuesday, Jan. 12 at Ford’s Prairie Elementary School. The band has recently attended similar events at other area schools and students and faculty appreciate them.
For more information about the concert or choirs, contact Ruth Woodcock at ext. 248. To learn about Groove For Thought, visit grooveforthought.com.
Manfest encourages students to pursue music
Published: Thursday, January 7, 2010
Updated: Tuesday, January 12, 2010 12:01
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