KSU Concert Choir to celebrate community and the holiday spirit

KSU Concert Choir to celebrate community and the holiday spirit

Posted on November 28, 2016

FRANKFORT — As part of the “What Can I Do with KSU?” community initiative, the Kentucky State University (KSU) Concert Choir, under the direction of Dr. Keith McCutchen, will present a concert at the South Frankfort Presbyterian Church, 224 Steele Street, at 4 p.m. Sunday, December 4.

The choir will present classic pieces from the spiritual tradition, including arrangements by KSU concert alumni and Legacy-to-Legacy recipient, Stacey Gibbs. The choir also will sing pieces from the Renaissance, including Thomas Tallis’, If Ye Love Me, Keep My Commandments and 20th-century Brazilian composer, Heitor Villa-Lobos’ setting of the Medieval hymn, Cor Dulce, Cor Amabile. In addition to their traditional repertoire, the choir will feature Dr. McCutchen’s arrangements of Duke Ellington’s music along with his contemporary gospel settings of Christmas carols.

“I’m so proud to be at Kentucky State and also to be in the south Frankfort area,” Dr. McCutchen said. “I’m very excited about partnering with Second Street School, Frankfort High School and all of the schools in the county, to create a stronger artistic/academic community. South Frankfort Presbyterian is in a great location to service the area with their ministries and outreach programs like this concert.”

The Concert Choir begins its 51st year under the direction of Dr. McCutchen. He comes to the choir, following the 50-year legacy of former director, Dr. Carl Smith, programming diverse concerts that reflect all genres of choral music.  Composed of undergraduates from all academic areas of the University, the concert choir is a well-rounded, diverse organization that upholds the highest standards in performance and academics.  The choir has appeared in several major cities throughout the United States and has also performed in foreign countries, including Montreal, Toronto, and Nassau, Bahamas.

ABOUT KENTUCKY STATE UNIVERSITY

Kentucky State University, building on its legacy of achievement as a historically black, liberal arts, and 1890 Land Grant University, affords access to and prepares a diverse population of traditional and non-traditional students to compete in a multifaceted, ever-changing global society by providing student-centered learning while integrating teaching, research and service through high-quality undergraduate and select graduate programs. Located in Frankfort, Kentucky, KSU offers associate (two-year) degrees in two disciplines, baccalaureate (four-year) degrees in 24 disciplines, master’s degrees in eight disciplines, and one advanced practice doctorate in Nursing. KSU has 129 full-time instructional faculty members and more than 1,700 students.