April is the month of music with several concerts set to take place at Highland Community College’s Fine Arts Theatre in the Ferguson Fine Arts Center located at 2998 W. Pearl City Road, Freeport, Ill.
The season starts with the Chorale and Chamber Singers concert at 3 p.m. Sunday, April 8 in the Fine Arts Theatre. The Chamber Singers, one of Highland’s student ensembles, will present a diverse selection of sacred pieces, including Morten Lauridsen’s “Lux aeterna,” a setting of sacred Latin texts on the theme of light. The Highland Chorale, which features singers from Highland and members of the community, will present a selection of American folk songs.
The Highland Concert Band will perform their annual spring concert at 3 p.m. on Sunday, April 22 in the Fine Arts Theatre. The Highland Concert Band is featuring two great American composers. The music of Vincent Percichetti and Aaron Copland will be the anchors for the concert. The Concert Band will play Persichetti’s 1949 Divertimento and Copland’s 1954 “The Promise of Living,” from his Opera “The Tenderland.”
Then the ensemble will spend time introducing the music of three contemporary composers: David Mislanka, Carl Holmquist, and Robert W. Smith. Mother Earth; Mislanka, Play; Holmquist, and Songs for Earth, Water, Fire, & Sky; Smith will celebrate spring, Mother Earth, and a promise of something fun to come.
The Big Band and the Royal Scots perform at 7:30 p.m. on Friday, April 27 in the Fine Arts Center. The Royal Scots, Highland’s premier vocal ensemble, will present pop tunes, contemporary jazz compositions by Jeremy Landig, and jazz standards, including a new arrangement by student Joseph Quiroz. The Highland Big Band will perform classic repertoire from the Stan Kenton, Count Basie, and Tonight Show Big Bands.
The Spring Orchestra concert is held April 29 at 3 p.m. in the Fine Arts Theatre. The Highland Orchestra is in its second semester and will perform a variety of fun and accessible classical selections, including Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue (featuring Grace Cifonie on piano), Anderson’s Typewriter (featuring Ian Hunter on typewriter),and two movements from Grieg’s Peer Gynt Suite (including In the Hall of the Mountain King).
The Highland Youth Choir will round out spring concerts with a performance at 6:30 p.m. on April 30 in the Fine Arts Theatre. The first half of the program will include a variety of songs including “A World of Music” by Teresa Jennings, Donald Moore’s “Cantate Canon,” and “Listen to the Rain” composed by Stephen Lawrence. The second half of the program will be a presentation of “HATS! A Musical That Celebrates What’s Underneath” by John Jacobson and John Higgins.
The Chorale and Chamber Singers Concert and the Big Band and Royal Scots Concert are box office events. The other concerts are free. Order tickets by phone at 815-599-3718.