Interim Editor in Chief- Colleen Coleman
At 7:30 p.m. on Oct. 30th in Christ Chapel, the Gustavus Choir will be performing with the award-winning National Lutheran Choir (NLC) in their Lead Me Home: A Concert of Remembrance concert series. Tickets can be found at https://www.nlca.com/lead-me-home, with Gustavus students, faculty, and staff able to attend for free.
The NLC is a Twin Cities-based choir rooted in the Lutheran choral tradition, with a focus on celebrating, invigorating, and expanding sacred choral music. Well-known in the choral world, the NLC intends to inspire those of diverse faiths and backgrounds.
Lead Me Home: A Concert of Remembrance reflects on what lies between heaven and Earth. According to the NLC, the concert represents “a journey of remembrance and hope, [and] honors the beauty and fragility of life while offering a glimpse of the eternal home that awaits.” The concert series is themed around All Saints’ Day, a tradition in the Christian faith focused on honoring all saints, recognizing their lives of faith. All Saints’ Day is used as a time to celebrate and encourage faithfulness and hope, and to reflect on our own actions as a community.
The NLC reached out to the Gustavus Choir to collaborate during this concert series and will be performing together throughout the show. The NLC will also be collaborating with Minneapolis-based dance artist Eve Schulte on Thomas LaVoy’s O Great Beyond in the performance.
The Gustavus Choir and NLC will be performing The Kontakion by Rupert Lang together, with the text asking for God to give peace and resolve to his servants—reading “Give rest unto your servants with your saints O God. Give rest … where there is neither pain nor sorrow, neither sighing, but life everlasting.”
Performed by the combined groups, The Kontakion offers a solemn reflection on life, on Earth and beyond. According to Dr. Brandon Dean, director of the Gustavus Choir, All Saints’ Day services are centered around those we’ve lost, based on healing and honoring our loved ones. A highlight of the performance for Dean will be The Kontakion, not only with combining the two choirs but accompanied by Dr. Chad Winterfeldt, Cantor of Christ Chapel, on the organ.
Enriching opportunities such as these collaborations with professional ensembles is beneficial to both professionals and students, even at a liberal arts school such as Gustavus with students of various majors and involvements. “I think that there are universal things we can learn from each other. Sharing ideas—whether or not they are musical, human expression, or how we interpret the world around us—are all good reasons to share information with each other in this type of setting,” Dean said.
The NLC and the Gustavus Choir, amongst others, last worked together in 2022 for the F. Melius Christiansen 151st Anniversary Concert, in celebration of the notable Norwegian choral conductor. “I was fortunate enough to collaborate with them my first year in choir at the FMC concert and celebration. I’m very excited to work with them during my senior year and sing some Gustavus traditions pieces like The Kontakion and Praise To The Lord,” Gustavus Choir President Senior Eli Spurgeon said.
Join the Gustavus Choir in collaboration with the award-winning National Lutheran Choir at 7:30 p.m. on Oct. 30th in Christ Chapel, in their Lead Me Home: A Concert of Remembrance concert series. Tickets can be purchased at https://www.nlca.com/lead-me-home, with Gustavus students, faculty, and staff able to attend for free. Lead Me Home, centered around All Saints’ Day, will honor the fragility and beauty of life.
“Anytime we can, we should take a minute to pause in our busy lives and reflect on our human connections, with each other and those we’ve loved and lost, away from the bustle of day to day life. The music will certainly be inspiring, but the message will be very timely and important to us,” Dean said.