Dale Warland Singers visit Sunday

Minnesota-based choral group is first of several series to perform

Lauren Viera

The first of three vocal groups to come to Oberlin this month, the Dale Warland singers will light up Finney Chapel with myriad choral music Sunday evening. Ranked alongside the best groups in the European vocalist tradition, the American ensemble, directed by founder Dale Warland, visit Oberlin as part of their 1998 Cathedral Tour.

Sunday's program will begin with the processional of S. Bucat Dulpa's Doxa Patri, followed by Sergei Rachmaninoff's Choral Concerto, Frank Ferko's O verbum Patris and Ernani Aguiar's Salmo 150. These pieces make up the first section of the Dale Warland Singers' program, followed by six other sections containing works by 20th century composers.

The second section inludes Herbert Howells' Requiem and highlights from Barber's Agnes Dei, while later sections include choral works from Nokolai Golovanov, Francis Pulenc, Josef Rheinberger and others.

The Minnesota-based singers have been around for over 25 years, founded in 1972 by Warland, then choral professor at the state's Saint Paul's Macalester College. The Singers have chosen to feature almost entirely 20th century music on their programs, keeping the contemporary tradition alive.

Their dedication to less-common composition material has led the singers to successfully winning the ASCAP Award of Adventuresome Programming in 1992, 1993 and 1996. The group has also recorded over 20 CDs, the most recent of which is Blue Wheat, a collection of American Folk Music. Reactions to the albums has been extraordinary. The Seattle Times said Blue Wheat was "the loveliest choral disc to emerge in a long time." Other recordings by the group have been called "splendid, melting stuff, beautifully managed."

Sunday will prove whether or not the group can deliver as well live as they do recorded. In the meantime, two other vocal groups will make their way to Oberlin this weekend. Tonight, the Fisk Jubilee Singers perform at Finney Chapel, and Saturday, alumni choral group Eighth Blackbird will perform at Warner Concert Hall. Also, later this month, Cherish the Ladies bring their Celtic tradition to the College. The Dale Warland singers are only the beginning of a full month of Oberlin-hosted choral enrichment.

The Dale Warland Singers perform Sunday, Feb. 8 at 8 p.m. Tickets are available through CTS. Students are $10, $12 at the door; Senior Citizens and staff are $14 and $16; tickets for the general public are $16 and $18. The Fisk Jubilee Singers perform tonight at Finney Chapel at 8 p.m., and Eighth Blackbird perform Saturday at Warner Concert Hall at 8 p.m. Both of these events are free.