As part of the Gustavus Artist Series the Music Department is proud to present Mexico’s Premiere Vocal Ensemble: Voz en Punto. The acapella group will perform in the Jussi Björling Recital Hall on Monday, Nov. 16 at 7:30p.m.

Director of Fine Arts Al Behrends ‘77 manages the Gustavus Artist Series and all aspects of public events presented by the Department of Music.

“The Gustavus Artist Series was founded in 1971 as a means to bring artists of world class to the campus to work directly with students in classes, lessons, clinics, master classes, give public presentations, lectures, music and theatre/dance performances, exhibitions, etc,” Behrends said.

“Voz en Punto draws from a wealth of Mexican folk songs and infuses them with vocal jazz arrangements. What results is something enriching and rewarding.”
—Michael Jorgensen

Since Gustavus Artist Series was created, groups such as the Juilliard String Quartet, Tokyo String Quartet, the Kings’ Singers, and Ladysmith Black Mambazo have been brought to campus. Now, it’s time for Voz en Punto to bring traditional Mexican music to Gustavus.

Founded in 1990, Voz en Punto has traveled around the world stunning audiences in Russia, Finland, Egypt, Japan and more countries.

Now, thanks in part to VocalEssence (VE), a premier choral music organization based in Minneapolis, Gustavus faculty and students get to enjoy a wonderful concert.

“Voz en Punto is coming to the US under an invitation from Philip Brunelle’s VocalEssence in Minneapolis. We’ve worked many times in the past with VE and they contacted us to see if we were interested in booking Voz en Punto,” Behrends said.

The good relationship between VocalEssence and Gustavus is what makes Voz en Punto’s upcoming concert possible. Dr. Michael Jorgensen, a long-time member of VocalEssence, is hosting the group’s visit to Gustavus. All students are highly encouraged to attend the performance.

“Any student, singer or not, should be in the audience on Nov. 16. Voz en Punto combines a very high level of singing with great arrangements. The result of their hard work is an incredible concert experience for the audience. This concert will be one that each member of the audience will remember for a long time. It doesn’t get much better than this,” Behrends said.

The music will be traditional Mexican songs and will be a great insight into the culture of another country.

“Voz en Punto combines a very high level of singing with great arrangements. The result of their hard work is an incredible concert experience for the audience.”
—Al Behrends

“Voz en Punto draws from a wealth of Mexican folk songs and infuses them with vocal jazz arrangements. What results is something enriching and rewarding,” Jorgensen said. “I am very excited about Voz en Punto coming to Gustavus.  This is an excellent opportunity for our community to hear a renowned vocal ensemble live.”

Voz en Punto has performance videos all over YouTube. They were founded by José Galván. The group is comprised of six singers; three male and three female.

“Any student, singer or not, should be in the audience.”
—Al Behrends

“They are often compared to the Kings’ Singers who were on the series in 1990. Other comparisons are made to the vocal quality, tight harmonies and incredible arrangements of Manhattan Transfer, the Nylons and (for those with longer memories in the small vocal ensemble world) the Swingle Singers,” Behrends said. “It is fitting that we bring groups like Voz en Punto to the campus to demonstrate even greater heights of vocal performance. It’s great to know that we’ll have them performing in Jussi Björling Recital Hall which was named after one of the greatest singers of the 20th Century.”

If you are free on Monday Nov. 16, reserve a ticket and see Voz en Punto.

“The Artist Series committee is committed to making this quality of performance available to everyone. Gustavus students get one free ticket with an ID but should not wait until concert time to get a ticket. I suspect tickets will go fast and you really shouldn’t miss this concert by Voz en Punto,” Behrends said.

Tickets are available online at gustavustickets.com.