Music Department and Music Center Concerts

Sat, Jul 08th @ 7:30 pm — Sauder Concert Hall

Hailed as “One of the most innovative and exciting percussion ensembles to emerge in the golden age of chamber music” (Jonathan Haas, New York University) for their immersive sound world, New York City-based Excelsis Percussion Quartet is Marcelina Suchocka (Poland), Aya Kaminaguchi (Japan), Britton-René Collins (United States), and Mariana Ramirez (Mexico).

This international group of women with a multilingual combination of five languages join together to speak the universal language of rhythm, rooted in their belief that music possesses an ability to unite us all. Excelsis brings vibrancy into the percussion community through eclectic programming, innovative storytelling, and embracing their intersectional identities.

Excelsis’ breadth of repertoire spans from classical to avant-garde. With the presence of exciting arrangements, including Björk and other pop music covers, Excelsis advocates for multi-genre representation in their programming, charming audiences with contrasting and uniquely innovative concert experiences.

The concert is held as part of the 2023 Midwest Chamber Percussion Camp at Goshen College.

Sat, Sep 16th @ 7:30 pm — Rieth Recital Hall

Goshen College voice professors Scott Hochstetler and H. Roz Woll will present a joint recital in Rieth Recital Hall. Hochstetler and Woll will perform individually and as a duo.

The recital will include Dorothy Rudd Moore’s song cycle Twelve Quatrains from the Rubaiyat for Mezzo-Soprano and Oboe featuring Mika Brunson, oboist; three songs by Jaime León Ferro; and La Bonne Chanson (the Good Song), a song cycle by Gabriel Fauré for voice, piano, and string quartet, featuring Luke Norell, piano, Andrew Nowicki and Maggie Nowicki, violins, Rosalyn Troiano, viola, and Dato Machavariani, cello.

Sat, Oct 07th @ 7:30 pm — Sauder Concert Hall

The Homecoming Music Gala, held as part of Goshen College’s Homecoming Week activities, is traditionally the first opportunity to hear GC’s music ensembles. This concert will feature performances by the Goshen College Chamber Choir, Vox Profundi, Voices of the Earth, and Symphony Orchestra, as well as by GC music faculty members.

Sat, Oct 21st @ 7:00 pm — Rieth Recital Hall

Judges and adjudicators in the 2023 Sherer Violin & Piano Competition, held at Goshen College, will perform in a recital in Rieth Recital Hall. The concert is free and open to the public.

Performing will be Matthew Hill, piano; Clare Longendyke, piano; Solomia Soroka, violin; Miroslav Hristov, violin; and Caroline Chin, violin.

More information about the Sherer Competition can be found on the competition website.

Sun, Oct 22nd @ 4:00 pm — Sauder Concert Hall

Winners of the 2023 Sherer Violin & Piano Competition will perform their selections on the Sauder Concert Hall stage. Performers will be accompanied by Luke Norell, piano.

For more information about the Sherer Violin & Piano Competition, please visit the competition website.

Tue, Oct 24th @ 7:30 pm — Rieth Recital Hall

The Rawlins Piano Trio – Ioana Galu (violin), Sonja Kraus (cello), Susan Keith Gray (piano) – is a dynamic group of performers, teachers and scholars, distinguishing itself in arts outreach, masterclasses and a variety of performances. “These artists are first class. They perform with elan and intensity. Highly recommended!” says bassist and Inner Game of Music author Barry Green. Prestigious performance venues include Sejong Chamber Hall (Seoul, South Korea), Chiang-Kai-Shek Cultural Center (Kaohsiung, Taiwan), Teatro de Anita Villalaz for the Fundación Sinfonía Concertante de Panama and national conferences of the College Music Society and Chamber Music America.

Their diverse repertoire ranges from standard works to new and undiscovered pieces deserving to be brought into the public light. Owing to its expertise as a preeminent interpreter of American music, the ensemble has recorded five CDs of these works. Attracting Opposites (Azica, 2013) celebrates commissions by Miguel Roig-Francoli, Stephen Yarbrough, James Lentini, Timothy Hoekman and Emma Lou Diemer. In 2009, American Discoveries (Albany) presented the Trio’s first commissioned composition–Volvic Maritim by New York based composer, Daniel Bernard Roumain. Reviewer J. Scott Morrison declared American Discoveries, “…another winner from the Rawlins Trio…they continue their work of bringing us American composers’ music that is worth hearing…Their playing is artful, suave and pleasing.”

The members of the Trio are on the faculty of the University of South Dakota Department of Music. As enthusiastic teachers, outreach is a vital component of their touring schedule with masterclasses and school visits on a regular basis throughout the United States and abroad. The ensemble is named in honor of the late Marjorie and Robert Rawlins, its principal benefactors and graduates of the University of South Dakota in the 1940s.

The Trio will welcome special guest Penny Thompson Kruse, violin, in performances of Mozart’s Piano Quartet No. 1 in G minor, K. 478 and Faure’s Piano Quartet No. 1 in C minor, Op. 15.

Sat, Oct 28th @ 7:30 pm — Sauder Concert Hall

The Goshen College Choirs will welcome CSA choir Sommo Voci and guest soloist Matthew Hunter in a performance of Robert Ray’s “Gospel Mass” as part of the annual Fall Choral Concert in Sauder Concert Hall. Performing are the GC Chamber Choir and Vox Profundi, directed by Scott Hochstetler; Voices of the Earth, directed by H. Roz Woll; and Sommo Voci, directed by Kristin Kauffman.

The concert is highlighted by a mass choir performance of the “Gospel Mass,” featuring guest soloist Hunter and guest musicians. The choirs will also perform individually.

Tue, Oct 31st @ 7:30 pm — Rieth Recital Hall

A world-renowned expert in Latin American and Iberian Art songs, Patricia Caicedo is a multifaceted artist-scholar with numerous recordings, books, concerts, and media appearances. She has released eleven albums and published numerous scholarly editions of scores and books, including The Latin American Art Song: Sounds of the Imagined Nations, the go-to history on its subject.

Patricia has led a crusade to include underrepresented repertoires and creators in music curricula and concert venues, having performed worldwide and founding and directing the Barcelona Festival of Song, which focuses on studying art songs in Spanish, Catalan, and Portuguese.

Fri, Nov 03rd @ 7:30 pm — Sauder Concert Hall

The Goshen College Symphony Orchestra, directed by Richard Brunson, will present its fall concert in Sauder Concert Hall.

Tue, Nov 07th @ 7:30 pm — Sauder Concert Hall

Goshen College’s treble voice choir, Voices of the Earth, will be joined by area high school high voice choruses for a day of rehearsals and workshops, culminating in an evening choir concert in Sauder Concert Hall. Voices of the Earth is directed by H. Roz Woll.

Fri, Nov 17th @ 7:30 pm — Sauder Concert Hall

Lavender Jazz is Goshen College’s “big band” jazz ensemble. This student ensemble will perform their fall concert of jazz charts and standards in Sauder Concert Hall. LJ is directed by Greg Smucker.

Sat, Feb 10th @ 7:30 pm — Sauder Concert Hall

The Goshen College Choirs, directed by Scott Hochstetler and H. Roz Woll, will present their annual Winter Choral Concert in Sauder Concert Hall. Performing are the GC Chamber Choir, Vox Profundi (low voice), and Voices of the Earth (high voice).

Sun, Feb 11th @ 4:00 pm — Rieth Recital Hall

The Sherer Trio is Goshen College’s resident chamber music ensemble. The Trio is comprised of violinist Solomia Soroka, cellist Dato Machavariani, and pianist Matthew Hill. The Sherer Trio is named for late Goshen College Professors Emeritus Lon & Kathryn Sherer, who taught for decades fostering musical excellence to generations of Goshen College students.

Sat, Feb 17th @ 7:30 pm — Sauder Concert Hall

Goshen College student winners of the 2023-24 Concerto-Aria Competition will perform their winning works in Sauder Concert Hall with the Goshen College Symphony Orchestra. The GCSO is guest-conducted by Brian Mast.

Winners are:

• Julia Jun & Sasha Dyck, pianos (Poulenc, Concerto for Two Pianos, mvt. 1)
• Saige Lind, violin (Lalo, Symphonie Espagnole)
• Victor Vegas, Dontaye Albert, Fatima Zahara, Maggie Lapp, Irish Cortez, voice (Mozart, “Why, why, why” from Die Zauberflöte)
• Madeline Bollinger, voice (Puccini, “O mio babbino caro” from Gianni Schicchi)
• Leif Billings, voice (Donizetti, “Quanto e bella” from L’elisir d’amore)

Sun, Mar 03rd @ 7:30 pm — Sauder Concert Hall

Voices of the Earth, Goshen College’s world music treble choir, will conclude their Spring Break tour to Detroit, Cleveland, and Chicago with a Home Concert in Sauder Concert Hall. Voices of the Earth is directed by H. Roz Woll.

Fri, Apr 05th @ 7:30 pm — Umble Center

Lavender Jazz, Goshen College’s big band, will present their spring concert in Umble Center on the campus of Goshen College. Lavender Jazz is directed by Greg Smucker.

Sun, Apr 14th @ 7:30 pm — Sauder Concert Hall

The Goshen College Symphony Orchestra will present its Spring Concert in Sauder Concert Hall. The GCSO is conducted by Brian Mast.

Tue, Apr 16th @ 7:30 pm — Sauder Concert Hall

Vox Profundi, Goshen College’s low voice chorus, will be joined by area high school low voice choral ensembles for a day of workshops and rehearsals, culminating in a festival choral concert in Sauder Concert Hall. Vox Profundi is directed by Scott Hochstetler.

In addition to Vox Profundi, participating are high school choirs from Logansport (Ind.), Goshen, Elkhart, and community choir The Open Fifths.

Admission is free and the public is warmly invited.

Sat, Apr 20th @ 7:30 pm — Sauder Concert Hall

The Goshen College Choirs will present their annual EARTHTONES concert of world choral music in Sauder Concert Hall. The choirs — Chamber Choir, Vox Profundi, and Voices of the Earth — will present a varied program featuring choral works from a wide variety of countries and sung in foreign languages. Graduating senior choir members will also be recognized in this concert. The choirs are directed by Scott Hochstetler and H. Roz Woll.