When I attended Westminster Choir College, all undergraduate students after the freshmen year and most graduate students participated in Symphonic Choir. Under the direction of Joseph Flummerfelt, we prepared major works to sing with the Philadelphia Orchestra, New Jersey Symphony and New York Philharmonic. This group was one of the primary reason I chose to attend Westminster.

At the beginning of my sophomore year, the first performance of Symphonic Choir was with Riccardo Muti and the Philadelphia Orchestra. All of the men would sing Coro di Morti by Goffredo Petrassi (1904-2003). A smaller mixed group was chosen to perform the second half of the program: Requiem by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. As a sophomore, I was thrilled to be accepted into this auditioned group, and even more thrilled to get Riccardo Muti to autograph my score:

While I am not always a fan of Mozart's music, the Requiem is one of my all-time favorite Classical works. The Introitus, Kyrie, and Lacrimosa are just superb works of art that I would gladly request for my own funeral (which hopefully won't be anytime soon)! So, when I was asked to play organ for the upcoming performance of Mozart's Requiem by the Central Florida Community Arts, I was delighted to say yes.

Last summer, I was able to collaborate with the group to present John Rutter's Gloria. I look forward to working with this wonderful choir again, and hope if you are in the Orlando area, you will be able to come and enjoy this fabulous piece of music.