The Hesston College Bel Canto Singers will present the program “Dwelling in Thresholds” in west central Florida, under the direction of Bradley Kauffman, during a Fall Break tour Oct. 12 to 14.
The “Dwelling in Thresholds” program is inspired by the college’s campus-wide focus on refugee resettlement during the 2013-14 year led by the common-read book “Outcasts United” by Warren St. John.
“We are exploring the ways the music itself is a threshold for contemplation,” said Kauffman. “The concert will include an examination of the musical scale and how composers harness specific notes within the scale in order to elicit different types of impact. Our repertoire encompasses six languages, sacred and secular idioms and renaissance to twenty-first century, all in an exploration of how God calls people to dwell together.”
The full Bel Canto tour includes:
- October 11, noon – University of Tampa
- October 11, 7 p.m. – Bahia Vista Mennonite Church, 4041 Bahia Vista St., Sarasota, Florida
- October 13, 9 a.m. – Bay Shore Mennonite Church, 3809 Chapel Dr., Sarasota
- October 13, 10:30 a.m. – Covenant Mennonite Fellowship, 3205 Southgate Cir., Sarasota
- October 14, 10:45 a.m. and 11:27 a.m. – Sarasota Christian School, 5415 Bahia Vista St., Sarasota
- October 14, 7 p.m. – Iglesia Menonita Arca de Salvacion, 3645 Michigan Ave, Fort Myers
All performances are free and open to the public, though a free-will offering will be collected to defer expenses.
Members of Bel Canto Singers are selected by competitive audition during the preceding academic year. The roster for 2013-14 has 22 students from nine states and two countries.
Members of Bel Canto are Rachelle Adrian, Mountain Lake, Minn.; Laura Baker, Protection, Kan.; Mary Bender, Harrisonburg, Va.; Spencer Berning, Newton, Kan.; Josh Booth, Goessel, Kan.; Davis Cook, Goessel, Kan.; Rebecca Eichelberger, Geneva, Neb.; Rachelle Haarer, Goshen, Ind.; Galed Krisjayanta, Surakarta, Indonesia; Havela Lehman, Canby, Ore.; Matt Lind, Harrisonburg, Va.; Jay Marsten, Murpheysboro, Ill.; Morgan Martin, New Holland, Pa.; Karli Mast, Hubbard, Ore.; Holly Peters, Hesston, Kan.; Cameron Ponce, Elkhart, Ind.; Nathanael Ressler, Mount Vernon, Ill.; Rebecca Rhodes, Arthur, Ill.; Jason Schroeder, Harper, Kan.; Jeffrey Smoker, Harrisonburg, Va.; Emily Taylor, Inman, Kan.; and Taylor Zehr, Archbold, Ohio.