Pro Coro's Male Voices
The bodacious boys of Pro Coro Canada are slipping out of their tuxes into 1980s spandex threads for a fun-filled Male Voices of Pro Coro concert on Sunday, Jan. 28 at All Saints Anglican Cathedral.The 20 singers are stoked to perform an a cappella concert that meshes classical music with ’80s pop hits, music from an era that was diverse, eclectic and extravagant.
Among the pop tunes, the choir sings Bobby McFerran's Don't Worry, Be Happy as well as the Michael Jackson, Lionel Ritchie co-write, We Are the World, the charity anthem of the decade.
St. Albert's Trent Worthington has written an arrangement of It's Raining Men, a huge, sassy hit for Spice Girl Geri Halliwell. And St. Albert baritone Michael Kurschat is tagged to belt a solo in Glass Tiger's Don't Forget Me When I'm Gone.
On the weightier side, the choir also sings Estonia's Veljo Tormi Vistel, Vastel, a folk music cycle and Scandinavian composer Folke Rabe's Rondes.
"It's (Rondes) written in an experimental style and can only be performed by a top-notch choir. It's not a traditional choral piece. It's very open and loose," Kurschat said. "Some parts are dissonant. It's more sound effects than music. And there are some very funny sound effects."
Special guests for the afternoon are 20 voices from the Axios Men's Choir.
"It will be a full stage, a loud stage and it's all acoustically produced."
Prior to the concert, Pro Coro conductor Michael Zaugg will offer a talk at 2:30 p.m..
The concert starts at 3 p.m. Tickets are $25 to $30 at http://procoro.ca
Shumka's Ancestors and Elders
First Nations dance practices have in the past been dismissed by academics and the greater dance community. Not so with Shumka.The dance company has spent the better part of a decade choreographing Ancestors & Elders, an exploration of tradition and truth. It shares the story of the first Ukrainian settlers who encountered First Nations people in this harsh new land.
It explores their shared values and respected differences, and how survival for both cultures was filled with tremendous loss and struggle.
Directed by Indigenous theatre artists Barry Bilinsky and Shumka's Joseph Hoffman, the world premiere will be held April 27 and 28 at the Jubilee Auditorium. Tickets range from $15 to $60. Visit http://ticketmaster.ca.
