Pitt-Greensburg's Joan Chambers Concert Series presents the Heinz Chapel Choir

Choir in Heinz Chapel

The internationally recognized Heinz Chapel Choir will perform Friday, April 20, at the University of Pittsburgh at Greensburg as part of the Joan Chambers Concert Series. The program, which is free and open to the public, will begin at 8 p.m. in the Mary Lou Campana Chapel and Lecture Center (150 Finoli Drive, Greensburg, PA 15601).

The Heinz Chapel Choir, composed of students from all disciplines at the University of Pittsburgh, has been performing its mostly a cappella repertoire since 1938. “Tuneful Turning” is the theme of the choir’s 2018 spring concert music. The program explores music set to texts that embrace analogy, inviting listeners to use their imaginations as well as their ears. The program features John Corigliano's Fern Hill, with accompaniment of small ensemble of strings and harp, and guest artist Liam McCarthy, boy soprano.

The program also highlights the group through its rich a cappella literature, including:

  • Palestrina: "Sicut cervus - Sitivit anima mea"
  • Daniel Elder: "The Heart's Reflection"
  • William Hawley: "Vita de la mia vita"
  • Eriks Esenvalds: "The Treasure" and "Let It Be Forgotten"

Susan Rice, DMA, senior lecturer in Music at Pitt, directs the ensemble and teaches the ear-training course sequence.

Prior to her appointment at Pitt, Rice was assistant professor of Music at Beloit College in Wisconsin. She has conducted traditional mixed and single-gender choruses of varying sizes, including chamber choirs, symphonic choirs, opera choruses, and vocal jazz ensembles, as well as teaching music theory and interdisciplinary courses.

An active clinician, Rice has worked with choirs in Pennsylvania, Michigan, Illinois and Wisconsin. Her research interests include sketch study and compositional process, performance practice of the Baroque and Classical eras, the historical, sociological, and gender issues surrounding women’s choruses and singing societies, and multi-disciplinarity as a means of engagement within the choral experience. Rice earned degrees at the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music (B.M., music education), Western Michigan University (M.M., choral conducting), and the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (D.M.A., choral conducting and literature). Before embarking on her graduate studies, she served for eleven years as director of Choral Music at Pocono Mountain Senior High School in Swiftwater, Pennsylvania, and is delighted to return to the Keystone State.

The Joan Chambers Concert Series is possible through the generous support of Pitt-Greensburg President Emeritus George F. Chambers. It brings local, national, and international artists to our campus for performances of the highest professional caliber. The series is named in honor of Joan Chambers, late wife of President Chambers, who was an ardent supporter and representative of Pitt‐Greensburg in the community for many

years. The Children’s Literature Collection in Millstein Library, another of her passions, was developed and named in her honor.

Founded in 1963, the University of Pittsburgh at Greensburg is a publicly assisted, four-year, liberal arts college in southwestern Pennsylvania. Pitt-Greensburg offers 29 baccalaureate degree programs, including new majors in Nursing, Healthcare Management, Public Policy, and Education, as well as 24 minors and five certificate programs. With nearly 1,500 students, more than 10,000 alumni, and faculty and staff numbering 260, Pitt-Greensburg provides a vibrant, diverse community that is a dynamic model of a 21st century liberal arts education. As part of the University of Pittsburgh system, Pitt-Greensburg offers the resources of a world-renowned university combined with the individualized and immersive experiences of a small liberal arts college. Creativity and an entrepreneurial spirit permeate the campus and extend into its many collaborative projects with the Westmoreland County community. Nestled in Pennsylvania’s beautiful Laurel Highlands, the campus a five-minute drive from uptown Greensburg’s coffee shops, restaurants, art museums, theatres and boutiques and less than an hour’s drive from Pittsburgh.

Publication Date

Wednesday, December 31, 1969 - 23:00