The Denison Singers, an all-student group directed by William Osborne, will perform at 8 p.m. on Friday (April 20) in Burke Recital Hall sharing the literature the group will take with them on a two-week concert tour of Portugal during the latter half of May. The Singers were invited to perform this concert in Worthington on April 7 and Dayton on April 8. They will travel to Medina on April 22. The Granville concert is free and open to the public.

The tour repertory includes a setting of the "Magnificat" by Manual Cardoso, a Portuguese composer of the early 17th century, as well as anthems by Robert Ramsey, an English composer of the same period and a version of Psalm 150 by Ernani Aguiar, a contemporary Brazilian composer. Otherwise, the program will consist entirely of works by American composers, including some robust folk hymns from Alexander Auld's "The Ohio Harmonist" of 1847, a Latin motet from 1898 by Horatio Parker, "Motets on Plainsong Themes" by Leo Nestor of the Basilica of the Immaculate Conception in Washington, and black spiritual arrangements by Jester Hairston. The secular portion of the repertoire includes Ned Rorem's cycle "From an Unknown Past," a group of familiar folksongs arranged by Edwin Fissinger, and Hawley Ades's clever medley of hit pop songs from the 1940s.

The Denison Singers was organized in 1961 as a madrigal group, specializing in Italian and English partsongs from the late Renaissance. The Singers began to tour in 1963 and have since presented more than 500 concerts in 24 states and the District of Columbia, as well as on nine foreign tours that have taken them to Germany, France, Switzerland, Hungary, Poland and Venezuela, among others.

The group has made radio and television program appearances both in the United States and abroad. They have performed Menotti's The Unicorn with Dancentral, and worked with pop singer Andy Williams and The Chieftains during their seasonal appearances in Columbus and with The Early Interval, a professional early music ensemble. They have also performed with members of the Denison Jazz Faculty, the Bergonzi String Quartet and ensembles of players from the Columbus Symphony Orchestra.

William Osborne serves as Distinguished Professor of Fine Arts, director of choral organizations and university organist and is the founding conductor of The Singers. He also conducts the Concert Choir, an organization dating from 1893, that presents major works with the assistance of a professional orchestra and visiting soloists. He holds three degrees from the University of Michigan and has done additional study with Nadia Boulanger, Helmuth Rilling and Sir David Willcocks. As an organist he has concertized widely across the United States, as well as in Germany, Switzerland, The Netherlands and Australia.

About Denison:

Denison University, founded in 1831, is an independent, residential liberal arts institution located in Granville, Ohio. A highly selective college enrolling 2,100 full-time undergraduate students from all 50 states and dozens of foreign countries, Denison is a place where innovative faculty and motivated students collaborate in rigorous scholarship, civic engagement and the cultivation of independent thinking.

For press inquiries:

Name

Barbara Stambaugh

Position Title

Director, Media Relations

Primary Email

stambaughb@denison.edu

Business Phone

(740) 587-8575