BYU-Idaho's Choirfest is this Saturday night and is featuring performances by BYU-Idaho's singing groups, including Collegiate Singers and Vocal Union.
“This year we have 7 choirs and over 500 singers, so it’s the biggest event we’ve had in quite a while. You’ll hear a couple of songs from each choir and it’s a chance to hear the men’s chorus, the women’s chorus, the collegiate singers. The Vocal Union is continuing this year. We are keeping the choir and moving it into a little bit of a contemporary acapella.”
Randall Kempton, a BYU-Idaho Music Department faculty member, listed some of the new and exciting songs the groups will perform.
“We’ll be singing some brand new spirituals, including This Little Light of Mine, which we’ve performed in devotional and another one that’s similar to it that will be a surprise. Then we’ll be doing a little bit of Jacob Collier’s music, a fantastic British musician who’s quite popular right now. The Vocal Union is hoping to a couple of new contemporary acapella things, possibly including a medley from the upcoming Wicked movie.”
While it's common and convenient these days to listen to concerts online, Kempton encourages people to attend this concert in person for an enriching experience.
“Coming to live concerts is something that’ s been hard for people to do lately, especially since Covid, but now it’s so easy to listen online. But there’s something different about coming into the hall and hearing all of that sound just surrounding you and sort of penetrating you and going through the air around you, and having that experience with a lot of people.”
Kempton encourages students of any major to try out for choir. If you are interested in joining one of the choirs, auditions are held at the beginning of every semester.
Choirfest will take place on Saturday October 18th from 6 to 8:00 pm in the Barrus Concert Hall in the Eliza R. Snow building. Tickets are $5 for students and $8 for the general public. Tickets are available online at tickets.byui.edu.