NAU Shrine of the Ages Choir to perform at Carnegie Hall

The Northern Arizona University Shrine of the Ages Choir and Master Chorale of Flagstaff will be performing with the New York City Chamber Orchestra and Festival Choruses at Carnegie Hall at 8:30 p.m Sunday, March 11.

The performance will feature conductors Edith Copley, director of choral studies at Northern Arizona University, and Anton Armstrong, conductor of the St. Olaf Choir, and will be in the Stern Auditorium on the Perelman Stage.

This is the first engagement that Copley and Shrine of the Ages have had at Carnegie Hall.

The performance will start with a half-hour solo set by the NAU Shrine of the Ages Choir, sung entirely a cappella. The set will include Jubilate Deo by James Fritschel; Bogoroditse Devo Raduysia by Sergei Khvoshchinsky; a Gaelic arrangement titled Seinn O by J. David Moore; and Brennen’s Lullabye by Terry Schlenker, written in memory of Brennen Maynard, an NAU music student in the early 1990’s. An all high school honor choir led by Armstrong will follow the Shrine set.

In the second half of the program, Copley will conduct the Masterworks Festival Chorus comprised of the NAU Shrine of the Ages Choir, Master Chorale of Flagstaff and three other choirs totaling over 225 voices in a performance of John Rutter’s Magnificat. Also featured will be recent NAU alumnus Leann Conley as the soprano soloist accompanied by the members of the New York City Chamber Orchestra. 

“When we do these big trips, it generates a lot of energy and excitement for the singers,” Copley said. “Performing at Carnegie Hall is probably a once-in-a-lifetime event, for them—they will never forget it.”

The Shrine of the Ages Choir is a 63-voice select mixed chorus. The choir was formed in the late 1930s and named in honor of its Easter Sunrise Service performances at the Grand Canyon, which is also known as The Shrine of the Ages. Copley has been conducting the choir since 1993. 

The Master Chorale of Flagstaff, established in 1978, is a community choir with more than 100 members that performs four concerts a year. Members range from 18 to 85 years old, are from all walks of life and are “there for the love of singing,” Copley said.

NAU alumni and friends are invited to a reception preceding the performance from 6:30 to 8 p.m. Sunday, March 11, at the Carnegie Hall Rohatyn Room. RSVP by March 5 to 888-RSVP-NAU. 

Tickets for the performance range from $50-110 and are available at www.carnegiehall.org or here. Use the 15% promotional discount code FTN13498.