Last fall, early in the semester, I fell woefully behind with this blog though I did keep up on You Tube and on Facebook with all the events I usually highlight here. I will now begin the process of catching up, so you see a mixture of dates and events for the next few months.
Sunday, February 26, the Peru State College Concert Band and the Hoyt Street Jazz Ensemble filled the College Theater with challenging and delightful music.
To enjoy a slide show from the evening's entertainment ordo download photographs, check out the photographs I posted.
Dr. Pat Fortney directed the Peru State College Concert Band's major piece for the evening, the challenging and beautiful Der Traum Des Oenghus, Teil 1 and Teil 2.
Listen to the twenty-four minute performance in two parts, ONE and TWO.
After the Concert Band's performance, the always exciting Hoyt Street Jazz Ensemble delighted the audience. I recorded two numbers from the band's program, Manteca and Tell Mama, a song that features Jade Pauseforreaction Gordon on vocals.
Thursday morning at 11:00 in the Fine Arts Recital Hall, an appreciative audience filled the hall beyond capacity to greet and to talk with the Sapp Brothers.
Bill and Lee Sapp own and operate, among other business interests, the Sapp Brothers Truck Stops that dot freeways between Pennsylvania and Utah--many will recognize the one across the bridge from Nebraska City along Interstate 29.
The entrepreneur brothers, authors of The Sapp Brothers' Story: Tough Times, Teamwork, and Faith answered questions from the audience for nearly and hour, discussing, among other things, their faith, their family, and their successful business careers.
The short video I made includes various sections of the exchanges between the brothers and the audience.
John Hnida, Thomas Horkey, Laura Fortney, Phil Chinske, and Pat Fortney
SOUL SPECIMEN
On Tuesday night after Honor Choir, I went to Shooters Bar down the hill from the college to photograph, to film, and to enjoy Soul Specimen's sounds.
The Fat Tuesday fun attracted a good crowd to Shooters, and I stayed for a set and took a series of pictures that feature the band members and the horns that joined Soul Specimen for a number. Two of the videos I created showcase Laura Fortney on vocals, the first a Soul Specimen original the group performed live for the first time that evening.
To conclude the first set, Laura and the band belted out "White Rabbit," a song she last performed while very pregnant at Oakfest this past September.
You will also enjoy a part of the entertaining jam session, All That Brass, that includes Wil Gleason on Trumpet, Jake Acers on Trumpet, Michael Casavant on Trombone, and Pat Fortney on Tuba.
On Wednesday, February 23, only a couple weeks after Chris Raabe'svisit, another Peru State Graduate and English Major, Todd Gottula returned to his alma mater to talk with Dr. Dan Holtz's Senior Seminar about his career since graduating in 1995.
Todd has for the past couple years served as Vice President/Event Booking for the Viaero Event Center in Kearney, Nebraska, which features events from Ice Hockey to a Miranda Lambert concert.
Prior to this position, Todd worked as a journalist for the Kearney Hub and continues to write, from time to time, articles for that paper and others outside Nebraska.
Todd talked about a variety of interesting things about his career in relation to the education--about English, Journalism, Music, and Sports--he took from his years at Peru State College.
The short video I recorded from a part of his talk relates to some of these connections in the discussion about the arc of Todd's career since his graduation. I also uploaded a few photographs from the visit.
Tuesday evening, February 21, Peru State College hosted the Choral Festival Honor Choir, featuring members of the Peru State College Choirs and Select high School Students.
Over one-hundred and eighty high school students took part in this years festival, the fourteenth. The first set of photographs reflect what goes on during the day, for students arrive from area high schools to practice all day for their evening concert. After practicing in the theater seats, the singers take the stage at 3:30 in the afternoon.
The second set of images comes from the evening performance, which includes the Peru State College Misty Blues Show Choir and the Honor Choir.
For your viewing enjoyment, watch the video of the Misty Blues performance of "Oye La Musica" and "Jailhouse Rock."
After the Misty Blues warmed up the large audience, the Honor Choir took the stage to cap off their day-long experience at Peru State College.
To appreciate the wonderful conclusion to this day on which everyone connected with the projected worked many hours, watch the video of the Honor Choir's performance of "Choose Something Like a Star," based on a poem by Robert Frost, and "Gentle Annie," a Stephen Foster song that features a solo by Auburn High School student Kendall Victor, daughter of PSC student Jaymi Victor.
On Sunday afternoon, February 19, the Peru State Theater featured Choirs in Concert with Peru State College's Concert Choir, Madrigal Singers and Misty Blues.
As usual, you can enjoy a slide show of images from the three groups and download any images that strike your interest.
The Concert Choir got the song-filled afternoon going, and you can enjoy two songs posted on You Tube from the group's program, the lovely "Festival Sanctus" by John Leavitt and Robert Frost's poem put to music, "Choose Something Like a Star." The Madrigal Singers offered a wonderful variety of songs, and I uploaded to You Tube a video that includes four songs, "In the Merry Spring," "Tantara Tan," "Swiftly Flowing Water," and "Come Now Let Us Be Joyful."
As they do at teach of the Choral Concerts, Peru State's Misty Blues took stage to conclude the program.
I uploaded two videos from the this year's program.
The first video features two songs, "Steam Heat" and "You Don't Own Me."
And the second video includes the final number of the evening, the fun-filled "Safety Dance."
Enjoy the photographs and the films--and attend on Tuesday at 6:30 PM in the PSC College Theater, the Choral Festival Honor Choir.
PSC Concert Band
Hoyt Street Jazz Ensemble
Sunday, February 26, the Peru State College Concert Band and the Hoyt Street Jazz Ensemble filled the College Theater with challenging and delightful music.
inment or do download photographs, check out the photographs I posted.
beautiful Der Traum Des Oenghus, Teil 1 and Teil 2.
Hoyt Street Jazz Ensemble delighted the audience. I recorded two numbers from the band's program, Manteca and Tell Mama, a song that features Jade Pauseforreaction Gordon on vocals.
