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The NDSU Concert Choir has a distinguished tradition of performing eminent choral literature at the highest level of artistry. The choir has performed at state, regional and national music conferences, including seven North Central American Choral Directors Association conferences and the national ACDA conference in San Antonio, Texas. The choir performs regularly with the Fargo- Moorhead Symphony and tours overseas every three years. Most recently, the choir visited Eastern and Central Europe in 2009, toured Croatia and Italy in 2012, and Iceland and Scotland in 2015. The choir received the first place gold medal at the International Choral Competition in Zadar, Croatia, during the 2012 tour. Dr. Dwight Jilek is in his first year as conductor of the NDSU Concert Choir and Director of Choral Activities (2024).
The choir has performed such masterworks as Ralph Vaughan Williams' Sea Symphony, Felix Mendelssohn's Elijah, L.v. Beethoven's Symphony No. 9, Verdi’s Requiem, Carl Orff's Carmina Burana, Benjamin Britten's War Requiem, and William Walton's Belshazzar’s Feast, to name but a few pieces. The repertoire of the choir is solidly traditional. Because of the touring the choir does, most of the repertoire is unaccompanied, a mix of sacred and secular and including all style periods. For their European tours, the programs showcase American composers of art music as well as the the rich folk song traditions of America.
Choir members are from many majors at NDSU, though more than two-thirds are music majors. The 60+ voice choir rehearses daily and performs several concerts each year on campus and during annual spring tours. The choir has produced more than 30 recordings. |
