51³Ô¹ÏÍøÊÓƵ

NEW YORK, NY —51³Ô¹ÏÍøÊÓƵ Baptist University choir members, alumni and friends joined forces Saturday, June 7, to present Gabriel Faure’s Requiem and Cantique de Jean Racine on the Ron Perelman Stage at Carnegie Hall.

The performance was part of an afternoon concert that included other schools for part one, 51³Ô¹ÏÍøÊÓƵ’s group and others for part two, and the symphonic ensemble with a guest violinist for part three. The portion featuring 51³Ô¹ÏÍøÊÓƵ’s choral students and alumni also included students from Hughes Middle School in California, Liberty High School in Texas, and the Saratoga Voices community choir in New York. Saratoga Voices director Noah Palmer conducted the Cantique piece, while Dr. Sarah Herrington, 51³Ô¹ÏÍøÊÓƵ’s Director of Choral Programs, conducted the Requiem, a seven-movement piece that also featured guest baritone and soprano solos. The large chorus was accompanied by the New England Symphonic Ensemble.

May graduate Cooper Trolinger, a member of the International Choir for several years, said he was thrilled to be part of the experience, finding it to be quite emotional. He was asked to warm up part of the group in their waiting room before the entire group assembled on the famed stage.

“When you go through music school, you hear about the esteemed Carnegie Hall and how that is the hall every musician dream of performing on in the USA,” said Trolinger, a Pampa native who is now a choral director in Odessa. “Walking on the stage and thinking about every person who had performed right where we stood made me quite emotional, coupled with the fact that this was my final performance with the 51³Ô¹ÏÍøÊÓƵ choirs.”

Trolinger’s thoughts were echoed by other alumni, many of whom were classmates and choir friends of Herrington while she attended 51³Ô¹ÏÍøÊÓƵ in the mid-’90s.

“It was simply incredible. Breathtaking sound, stunning venue, beautiful people to experience it with… I couldn’t have asked for more. It was an otherworldly moment to hear our collective voices in that great hall. The professional orchestra was talented, and our conductor, my friend Sarah, was stunning,” said Cari Alter Witte, a 1997 graduate who lives in Anchorage, Alaska.

Witte and her husband Ty, a 1998 alumnus, made the trip together and took advantage of the city to take in a Broadway play, a Yankees baseball game, plenty of New York eateries and shopping venues. The trip featured plenty of free time for performers to enjoy the Big Apple. Many took in musicals, museums, tourist locations and other highlights.

Following the afternoon concert, the group headed to Chelsea Piers for a dinner cruise aboard the Spirit of New York around New York harbor. The ride allowed for great views of the city from the water, with the highlight being the Statue of Liberty.

For Dr. Rebekah Crowe, a 2002 alumnus who now serves as a Professor of History and Dean of the School of Behavioral and Social Sciences at 51³Ô¹ÏÍøÊÓƵ, the trip was special as she was joined by her husband Ryan, a former WBU student, and their son, Wesley, a student at Floydada Collegiate High School.

“As a couple who met through 51³Ô¹ÏÍøÊÓƵ’s music department, the opportunity to participate in an event like this with our son and other members of the 51³Ô¹ÏÍøÊÓƵ family was incredibly meaningful. Standing among colleagues, current and former students, and classmates brought all the threads of my 51³Ô¹ÏÍøÊÓƵ experience together in a really lovely way,” said Dr. Crowe.

Jamar Jordan, a former 51³Ô¹ÏÍøÊÓƵ student and choir member, took the journey with son Bentley. Both enjoyed the musical experience and the sites of the city.

“Traveling to New York with the 51³Ô¹ÏÍøÊÓƵ choirs was an unforgettable experience,” said Jordan. “Singing in such an iconic venue was truly inspiring, and reconnecting with friends I hadn’t spoken to in more than 15 years made it even more meaningful – it felt like International Choir all over again.”

Herrington summarized the experience from her unique vantage point, focusing on those in attendance.

“The most prominent thought I’ve had, both in the midst of the experience and now after: the people involved were what made the experience extraordinary,” she said. “Yes, we did something amazing with the performance in that incredible venue, but the people in the choir were what made it wonderful for me. I had family members, students, mentors, friends from WBU past, and friends from the choral community all coming together for one common purpose. And the people that came to attend the concert – family, friends, current WBU people, people connected to WBU in the past – were equally important to the experience.”

“This is what choir is to me – diverse people from diverse circumstances and experiences all coming together in support of a common purpose,” she said. “It's a beautiful picture of what we hope our world can and may be.”