MT
Michelle Tamburo
  • Music Education
  • Class of 2014
  • Berlin Heights, Ohio

Michelle Tamburo Touring with Heidelberg University Concert Choir

2013 May 10

Michelle Tamburo of Berlin Heights, Ohio, is among the 32 members of the Heidelberg University Concert Choir preparing to embark upon its annual spring tour, traveling this year to the Midwest for a series of performances May 13-18.

The choir, under the direction of Dr. Greg Ramsdell, assistant professor of and director of choral activities, is the premiere mixed choral ensemble of the university's School of Music. For this year's tour, Tamburo, a junior majoring in music, and the choir will perform in Columbus, Ohio; Kettering, Ohio; St. Louis; Evanston, Ill.; Indianapolis and Champaign, Ill.

This year's repertoire is themed "Night at the Museum." "Our concert repertoire is organized in a way that we hope will approximate for the listener a stroll through a sonic art gallery," Ramsdell said. In the first gallery, all of the compositions are related to the themes of nature and creation. The second gallery transitions to timeless musical selections related to Nativity and Christmas narratives. The concert concludes with a gallery of compositions that explores the intricate subject of human relationships, often examining them through the lens of nature imagery. "As the concert progresses, we sincerely hope that our audiences will be moved by the symbiotic relationship between poetry and music, and that the cumulative associations of each piece will evoke ever-developing images regarding the essence of life itself," Ramsdell added.

Highlighting the program will be compositions by Howard Helvey ("O lux beatissima"), Gwyneth Walker ("I Will Be Earth"), David Conte (A setting of Theodore Roethke's "The Waking"), Eric Whitacre ("Lux aurumque"), David Childs (A setting of Emily Dickinson's "The Moon Is Distant from the Sea"), Irving Berlin ("Blue Skies"), Norman Dello Joio (A setting of the composer's adaption of Christina Rossetti's "Echo") and David Brunner ("Yo le canto todo el dia"). Complementing these compositions will be arrangements of traditional folk songs and spirituals by Mack Wilberg ("The King of Love My Shepherd Is"), Bob Chilcott ("Shenandoah"), and Paul Caldwell and Sean Ivory ("Go Where I Send Thee").

Since its inception in 1938, the Concert Choir has achieved the distinction of being one of the premier collegiate choral ensembles in the Midwest. Open to all Heidelberg students regardless of major, the Concert Choir rehearses three times each week and performs more than 15 concerts each year, including a domestic tour and a performance of Handel's "Messiah" as part of Heidelberg's Christmas concert at Tiffin's Ritz Theatre for the Performing Arts.

Founded in 1850, Heidelberg offers 32 majors, 29 minors and nine pre-professional programs, awarding the bachelor of arts, bachelor of science and bachelor of music degrees , as well as master's degrees in education, counseling, business administration and music. Affiliated with the United Church of Christ, Heidelberg has been ranked for 25 consecutive years as one of the top colleges in the Midwest by U.S. News and World Report.

For more information visit the web site at www.heidelberg.edu.