Posted on April 10, 2015
CCU Dean of Music to Perform at Carnegie Hall
Carnegie Hall, one of the most prestigious music venues in the world, will host Colorado Christian University Professor and Dean of Music Steven Taylor for a special concert on Sunday, April 12, at 8:30 p.m. Taylor, along with seven CCU students, will perform as part of Distinguished Concerts International New York (DCINY), an organization presenting broadly accessible, world-class musical entertainment in New York City.
This performance is not something I expected or had on my agenda, explained Taylor. It's a great blessing from God that I get to do this. I'm very grateful.
DCINY's artistic committee selected the bass soloist after his friend and colleague, Catherine Sailor, the director of Chorale Studies at the University of Denver, brought his work to the organization's attention. Sailor will conduct the spring concert, titled Grant Us Peace in conjunction with one of the performance pieces, Dona Nobis Pacem, by Ralph Vaughan Williams. Taylor will sing the bass solo for this song, as well as Mozart's Coronation Mass, in Carnegie Hall's Stern Auditorium, known as the most prestigious concert stage in the U.S.
Steve Taylor, Dean of CCU's School of Music I have not been inside Carnegie Hall before and I'm really anxious to see it, Taylor shared. It has such fame and renown that I'm excited to hear the acoustics and see what it looks like, and of course I am thrilled to sing there.
The seven CCU students accompanying Taylor will perform as part of the choir. They are practicing their parts with Sailor in anticipation of this incredible opportunity.
Taylor will come prepared as well. This particular group requires that all of the music be memorized, he noted. Usually when we perform concert works with orchestras I have music with me. So I've been memorizing and practicing everything for the last couple months.
DCINY will eventually post a video of the performance on the organization's YouTube channel for interested viewers. It is going to be a remarkable experience, says Taylor. The legacy of walking out on that stage where so many great performances have occurred, and then singing with an orchestra of professional musicians from New York, I think it's just a magnitude of artistry that I'm excited to be a part of.
For more information on the performance, please visit www.dciny.org.