The Valparaiso High School Choral Department under the direction of Linda Schonbachler, will present its annual fall concert, "Fall Fantasia" at 7 p.m. Tuesday in the high school auditorium.
Featured in the musical extravaganza will be the varsity singers show choir, the ISSMA state finalist concert choir, somen's and men's choruses, as well as the mixed chorus.
The Valparaiso High School music department is a two-time winner of the Grammy Award for excellence in music performance and education. The concert choir has performed in England, Wales, and the Czech Republic in various choral festivals and concert venues. In 1996, it represented the state of Indiana for the celebration of the end of World War Ii, touring throughout France, Germany, and Austria. The choir has attended master classes under the direction of Simon Carrington of the King's Singers and Manhattan Transfer. It has also performed with the singing Hoosiers and been featured with Andy Williams at the Holiday Star Plaza.
The concert choir, one of five choirs at Valparaiso High School, has consistently placed among the top five choirs in Indiana at the ISSMA State Final competition, winning the state championship in 1998 and 1999.
Members of the VHS concert choir performed at the prestigious International Choral Festival in Lucerne, Switzerland in July this year. They were the only high school choir selected in the nation to participate in this festival. The concert choir joined with the Ohio State and Bowling Green University choirs in the festival which was performed at the world-renowned KKL (Kultur-und-Kongresszentrum). Guess directors were William Skoog (Bowling Green State University) and Hilary Apfelstadt (Ohio State University).
The festival choir performed choral selections by Gustav Holst, Samuel Barber, W.A. Mozart, Gabriel Faure and Leonard Bernstein, accompanied by the Swiss orchestra "Santa Maria".
Selections from the Lucerne Choral Festival will be featured in the "Fall Fantasia" concert, which is open to the public. Tickets are $5 for adults, $3 for students, and $10 per family. For information, contact the choral department at Valparaiso High School.
--For The Times
