Jarman Auditorium came to life this past Thursday evening with stunning vocal performances by Longwood’s Camerata Singers and Chamber Singers. Together the Camerata and Chamber Singers form the Longwood Advanced Singers group.
Opening the concert was the all-female Chamber Singers, singing a powerful and awakening piece in Italian. The great amplitude of the group filled the air and captivated audience members. The first song was followed by a more peaceful and uplifting piece in English that concluded with a powerful ending. The Chamber Singers proceeded to perform four more songs, all in Czech, before the Camerata singers took the stage.
Longwood’s Chamber Singers is comprised of 17 young women and divided into two sections of sopranos and one alto section. 25 singers make up the co-ed Camerata Singers, including sopranos, altos, tenors, and bass vocalists. The Camerata singers performed several beautifully done pieces in Latin and Italian.
Prior to the Chamber Singers returning to the stage, conductor Dr. Pamela McDermott shared that the last Latin hymn performed by the Camerata singers would also be performed in Carnegie Hall in June by eight selected students. The remainder of the evening’s concert consisted of a French-Canadian choir song, a Lithuanian folk tune, several traditional American folk songs, as well as a fun piece entitled “Jabberwocky,” excerpted from a nonsense poem by Lewis Carroll.
An on stage pianist accompanied all of the pieces. If you are interested in catching either of these Longwood music groups on campus before the semester is over, the Chamber Singers will be making an appearance at Ruffner’s Grand Illumination on November 30 at 5:15 p.m., and the Camerata Singers will be caroling in the Rotunda as well on December 5 at 11:15 a.m.
