Concordia University, Nebraska

Organ and art students showcase talent at First Friday series in Lincoln

Concordia University, Nebraska students present Shakespeare's "The Winter's Tale."

Concordia University, Nebraska's premiere concert band, the University Symphonic Band is deeply rooted in the more than one hundred year history of instrumental musical ensembles at Concordia.

A six-member contemporary worship band from Concordia University, Nebraska perform at the Lutheran Educators Association national convocation Oct. 24 and 25 in Milwaukee, Wis.

Concordia's Handbell Choir performed as part of the first-ever virtual handbell ensemble this fall along with 440 bell ringers from 26 states and six countries recorded sound clips of the composition "Misterium" by James Meredith. The clips were then merged into one performance.

The Concordia University, Nebraska theater department's annual One Act Festival held April 18-20 showcased four student-directed plays that were performed in the Music Center's Studio Theater. Students have the opportunity to direct a play as part of Concordia's Play Production course, taught by Assistant Professor of Communication and Theater Bryan Moore. In the course, the students learn how to choose their material, manage a cast, set the stage and direct rehearsals. The class is meant to give students behind-the-scenes experience, since many have participated as actors in Concordia's theater program, but not as directors. The one acts also give other students an opportunity to participate in theater in a less demanding production than a full stage play. "Although there's a great amount of work that goes into the production, it's still rewarding in the end, when the shows are performed and the audiences are crying because they are laughing so hard," said senior Steven Whitney. "I learned a lot about how to work with actors," said senior Sarah Dinger. "Directing is really just teaching, and every actor learns differently. I also learned that the act of creating a vision is a really amazing thing. The show didn't turn out the way I imagined it would. It was better." Students from your area include:

Student art honors and scholarships were announced at Concordia University, Nebraska's annual student art exhibit held in the Marxhausen Gallery of Art on the Concordia campus. Media used in the roughly 200 pieces on display includes wax, wood, thread, paint, ink, wire, clay, video, stoneware, digital images and even sugar sculptures. Entries are judged by Concordia's full-time art faculty, with scholarships and awards selected according to criteria set by those who established the endowments for each award. Students from your area and their awards include:

Students were selected by audition for Concordia University, Nebraska's A Cappella Choir as it begins its 75th season

Sixteen Concordia University, Nebraska art students spent spring break in Chicago as part of a Concordia Art Club tour. The students visited the Art Institute of Chicago and explored the artistic attractions, music and cuisine of the city. Brenda Robson and art instructor Jennifer Bockelman led the group. The Art Club's purpose is to create opportunities and experiences for art students outside of the classroom such as Art Walks and Saturday School for elementary students to create art projects. Concordia's art department regularly hosts events for the public including Experience Art Days for high school students and art gallery exhibitions for the community. Concordia University, Nebraska students who went to Chicago are listed below, followed by their class year and hometown.

Sixteen Concordia University, Nebraska art students spent spring break in Chicago as part of a Concordia Art Club tour. The students visited the Art Institute of Chicago and explored the artistic attractions, music and cuisine of the city. Brenda Robson and art instructor Jennifer Bockelman led the group. The Art Club's purpose is to create opportunities and experiences for art students outside of the classroom such as Art Walks and Saturday School for elementary students to create art projects. Concordia's art department regularly hosts events for the public including Experience Art Days for high school students and art gallery exhibitions for the community. Concordia University, Nebraska students who went to Chicago are listed below, followed by their class year and hometown.

Eleven Concordia University, Nebraska musicians performed in the spring honor recital on Tuesday, April 9, in the Music Center's recital hall. Top students in Concordia's music program are selected to perform based on auditions before a panel of Concordia's full-time music faculty. The recital is intended to showcase exceptional student talent and effort in preparation and performance. "I feel very excited and honored to be a part of the recital," said performer Elyssia Finch. The musicians, including Finch, seek to master their performance repertoire through private vocal and instrumental lessons and hours of rehearsal each week. Honored musicians include:

Concordia University, Nebraska hosted its annual Christmas at Concordia concerts Dec. 7-9 at St. John Lutheran Church in Seward. An additional concert was added to the slate of Christmas at Concordia performances this year to better accommodate demand. In recent years all tickets have been reserved within a few days of becoming available. More than 2,000 people attended the four concerts. Multiple ensembles from the music department at Concordia took part in sharing the Christmas message. The four concerts featured the University A Cappella Choir, the University Symphonic Band, Male Chorus, Handbell Choir, Women's Chorale and the University Brass Ensemble. The groups performed traditional hymns of the season and request audience participation throughout the concerts. Scripture readings and original music from Concordia students and faculty also were part of the celebration. Students from your area who took part in the concert include:

Concordia University, Nebraska's Chamber Orchestra gave its first concert of the season on Sunday, Dec. 2, in the Music Center's recital hall. The orchestra, which formed last fall, has increased in size this year. The string section has doubled in size since the ensemble's first performance in October of 2011, now numbering nine stringed instruments in addition to the rest of the orchestra. "My goal for our ensemble this year is to present polished performances and explore literature for small orchestra from a variety of contrasting time periods," said Dr. Christopher Nichols, conductor of the orchestra. The concert began with Robert W. Smith's arrangement of "In the Bleak Midwinter" by Gustav Holst. Because the piece was arranged for a symphony orchestra, Nichols says he adapted the score for the lighter instrumentation of the Chamber Orchestra. Next, the ensemble presented three minuets by Giacomo Puccini, a composer known for his operas of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. These pieces featured the ensemble's string section. Emily Brandt, senior, of, Loveland, Colo., and Kelly Jacob, junior, of Winnebago, Neb., performed a concerto by Georg Philipp Telemann. The concerto will set Brandt's flute and Jacob's bassoon talents against the rest of the orchestra. The piece also utilized the unique sounds of a harpsichord. In closing, the orchestra performed excerpts from Johann Sebastian Bach's "Musical Offering, BWV 1079." This piece, based on the "thema regium" or "theme of the king," according to Nichols, was composed after Bach's visit to King Frederick II in 1747. The orchestra performed several short sections from the hour-long composition.

The theatre department at Concordia University, Nebraska presented "Into the Woods," a musical production depicting troubled fairy tale creatures, based on the works of the Brothers Grimm. The musical was performed Nov. 2-3 and Nov. 9-11 in the Weller Hall Auditorium. "Into the Woods," written by James Lapine, with music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, follows the stories of several fairy tale creatures including Little Red Riding Hood, Cinderella, Jack from "Jack and the Beanstock" and Rapunzel. The stories weave with the tale of a baker and his wife on their quest to start a family as they discover they've been cursed by an evil witch. The following Concordia University, Nebraska students were a part of the cast or crew: