Sunday 18th May 2025
The Marshall Community Chorus opens its 36th concert season by pulling out
all the stops. The choir will host noted choral composer Joseph Martin at their
concert on Sunday, October 27, at 2:00 PM at First Chrisitan Church of Marshall.
The concert, Come to the Music! is devoted to music about music and singing, featuring several compositions by Mr. Martin in addition to other composers.
Martin appears as the result of grants from the Charles Buckner Foundation and
the Missouri Choral Directors Association, with additional support from Marshall
Service Company and Central Missouri Agri-Service.
His visit to Marshall is part of the Composer Residency Project. The brainchild
of chorus director Ron Sayer, the project is a new endeavor bringing notable choral composers to rural west-central Missouri for concerts featuring their music.
Sayer related that “post-COVID, our schools have seen a decrease in the number of students participating in the performing arts, and post-graduation participation is lukewarm as well. Rural communities have seen this to a greater extent than urban areas. I began asking myself what could we do to help turn this trend around? Specifically, what can the Marshall Community Chorus do to positively impact this situation?”
According to Sayer, the project is performance and educationally based. “Joe Martin will be here for a rehearsal/workshop with the choir in addition to the concert, but just as important, will visit some area schools to speak with music students, encouraging them to continue their studies and involvement in music.”
The concert on October 27 will showcase some of Joseph Martin’s most popular
compositions, including his breakout composition, The Awakening. Considered a must-do piece for every choir this performance will mark the 30th anniversary of its publishing in 1995.
“I am excited that we can offer this music to the public. Joe Martin is a peerless
composer and advocate for music in both the secular and sacred settings,” said Sayer.
“He is also an accomplished pianist, and I bet he won’t let the concert go by without
sharing some solo piano music as well.”
The Marshall Community Chorus is a 40-voice volunteer choir with members representing the communities of Marshall, Grand Pass, Slater, Sweet Springs,
Fayette, Carrollton, and Sedalia.
Audience members are encouraged to arrive thirty minutes early (1:30 PM) to
participate in Conversation with the Composer, when Martin will talk about some
of the songs on the concert, pull back the mystery of composing, and even answer
some audience questions.
As always, the concerts of the Marshall Community Chorus are free and open to the public.