Concert Update

Every Spring New Mexico State University Choirs presents the Jack Ward Invitational Choral Festival where we highlight the work of choirs and local music teachers in the Southern New Mexico/El Paso area.

This year Dr. David Dickau was commissioned to write two pieces for the Choral Association of Southern New Mexico (CASNM) for adult and children's choirs. The songs - "Piping Down the Valleys Wild" and the "Laughing Song" - are beautifully written and a delight to sing!

The Gadsden School District Honor Choir from southern New Mexico were invited to perform these pieces with us. Additionally, they sang three pieces of their own - one of which was my composition "Sea Fever" for treble choir ( and which I had the privilege of conducting on the concert).

Also on the program is "The Raven" a multi-movement piece based on the poem by Edgar Allen Poe, by Justin Raines. I conducted the world premier of the first and third movements last fall, and Dr. Dickau conducted the whole piece in the concert.

Last night's concert was very successful, and we have one more night to perform. If you are in the Las Cruces area, this concert would be a high quality cultural experience.