MANSFIELD, PA— Area singers are invited to join the Mansfield University Festival Chorus for the spring semester. The Chorus, directed by Peggy Dettwiler, will meet on Tuesday evenings at 7 p.m. in Steadman Theatre beginning January 19 to prepare for the performance of two major works, Requiem for the Living by Dan Forrest and A High Lonesome Mass by Tim Sharp and Wes Ramsay, on April 16-17. 
The Requiem for the Living is a 40-minute, five-movement work for choir and chamber orchestra inspired by the Requiems of Fauré and Rutter. While Forrest included the traditional Kyrie, Agnus Dei, Sanctus, and Lux Aeterna, he replaced the Dies Irae with Vanitas Vanitatum about the pain of existence. The overall effect of the work, however, is a celebration of life.
Forrest was born in Elmira, NY, and received degrees in Piano Performance from Bob Jones University and a D.M.A. in composition from the University of Kansas. He has become one of the leading choral composers in the country. Forrest’s Requiem for the Living (2013) received more than 100 performances world-wide within a year of its composition, including performances in Canada, South America, Europe, Africa, Asia, and multiple performances at Carnegie Hall.
The High Lonesome Mass, composed by Tim Sharp and Wes Ramsay, is a 25-minute mass in bluegrass style. The words “high, lonesome” come from Bill Monroe’s famous description of bluegrass music. Composers Sharp and Ramsay combine the sound of southern vocal and instrumental harmony with the traditional form of the mass using early American hymn tunes and bluegrass instruments.
The work is a combination of the ageless words of worship from the Ordinary of the Mass (Kyrie, Gloria, Credo, Sanctus, and Agnus Dei) and the indigenous music of the American South. Elements of shape-note singing and sacred harp are intertwined with beautiful melodies and harmonies of Appalachian folk music. Add the energy and color of bluegrass instruments,
Crow Hill, a blue-grass band from Berks County, PA, will accompany both performances.
Participation in the rehearsals and performances is open to all persons on the university campus, high school students and community singers. Singers only need to vocalize for placement in the soprano, alto, tenor or bass sections. Sectional rehearsals will take place on Thursdays from 5-5:50 p.m. Volunteer members are encouraged, but not required, to participate in sectional rehearsals.
The Requiem choral score is available for purchase for $13.95 at the Mountie Den campus bookstore in Alumni Hall. Copies of A High Lonesome Mass will be distributed at the first rehearsal.
For more information or to schedule an audition, call (570)662-4721 or e-mail pdettwil@mansfield.edu