Sixth Annual Choral Classic Workshop Concert Held

Professor Paul Meers conducting the workshop

The chapel in AUB was transformed during the festive months of November and December into a haven for the enjoyment of delectable music. When the AUB Choir and Choral Society held their sixth annual Choral Classic Workshop Concert on November 17, the hall quickly filled to capacity with a diverse audience of high school and university students, faculty, staff, and friends of the AUB community.

The choir members, all dressed in black, were joined by a select group of high school student singers from area schools, namely the American Community School, International College, Broummana High School, International School of Choueifat, the Midas Music School, the Muhanna Music Makers, and the Collège Notre Dame de Nazareth. The students had been rehearsing with seasoned AUB Choir and Choral Society members and were finally ready for the festive night of music, led by conductor Paul Meers and accompanied by Ramzi Sabra MD on the organ.

The concert's program included a marvelous mix of Latin, English, Arabic, and French songs culled from an almost all-encompassing splendid repertoire spanning four centuries in the history of music. There were pieces from Renaissance England, like John Bennet's Weep, O Mine Eyes, and The Coventry Carol. Also featured were original as well as rearranged pieces from Baroque Germany and the all-time favorite folksongs of France. The evening concluded with a contemporary masterpiece from Lebanon and a riveting performance of Tallou Hbabna Tallou, a patriotic, pastoral song by the much-loved Lebanese composer, Zaki Nassif.

The AUB Choir is formed by students taking a one-credit course in music and usually merges with the Choral Society, a group of non-student adult singers, to present a combined concert. Their joint concert with the high school singers from Lebanon was organized by the Zaki Nassif Music Program of AUB.