Harmony With One Another

Some choral programs are driven by a desire for public accolades and intense competition. Concordia’s program isn’t one of them. “We sing and make music at our highest level, not because we have something to prove to the world, but because God has given us the gifts and the grace to make sweet music together,” said Dr. David Mennicke, chair of Concordia’s Department of Music. “We strive for excellence, but we do so in an atmosphere of community and mutual encouragement.”

Mennicke’s jovial smile and welcoming demeanor belie a director whose passionate approach to music performance demands the very best of every voice at every rehearsal and performance. Under his leadership and through the efforts of dedicated students and supportive colleagues, Concordia has sung its way into the ranks of Minnesota’s most notable college choirs.

Since arriving at Concordia in 1989, Music department chair Dr. David Mennicke has been a tireless advocate for his program, students and faculty. The servant leader attitude he expects from his students is one he lives by example through active leadership in professional organizations, campus committees, the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod and his church. Ongoing outreach to the music community as a guest clinician, competition adjudicator, performer and composer keep Concordia’s choral music program in the forefront.

In addition to performances with the Minnesota Orchestra (five invitations for collaborations in the past decade), Concordia was among an elite group of five Lutheran college choirs who were invited to perform solo pieces at the November 2006 concert at Orchestra Hall celebrating the 135th birth anniversary of F. Melius Christiansen, hailed as the father of American a cappella choral singing. The choir also has performed in more than a dozen state, regional and national conventions or gatherings of choral directors, music educators and church professionals. And, in 1997, the Christus Chorus received the first “Creative Programming Award” from the American Choral Directors Association of Minnesota.

Internationally, the Christus Chorus was invited to sing for the 2004 Pentecost Vespers at the St. Thomas Kirche in Leipzig, Germany (the church where J.S. Bach served as cantor.) During their Poland tour in 2000, Concordia was one of only two U.S. choirs invited by the Polish government to perform at Gaude Mater, the country’s annual festival of sacred music. The 49-voice choir will again perform internationally, with a concert and service tour to Ghana in May 2008. Creating a superior choral music program requires several key building blocks. “The Gospel is our foundation,” Mennicke said. “As choral singers, when we breathe in air and the Word of God, we are literally and spiritually ‘inspired’ (filled with breath and spirit.) When we then sing out that breath and Word, it blows out over the emptiness and voids in people’s hearts and souls, providing the opportunity for this Spirit of God to enliven our listeners and make them new creations in Christ.”

Building up from this Gospel foundation, a quality program needs quality singers with good musical backgrounds to provide student leadership, Mennicke said. Even more important though, are students with servant hearts. They should be prepared to commit their time and hard work to choir, checking their egos at the door and focusing on the group and its mission rather than individual desires.

Well-equipped facilities and top-caliber faculty with a passion for choral music are another critical building block for a healthy choral music program. The faculty hopes the program’s ongoing appeal will inspire generous donors to support the Music Scholarship Program, making it possible to draw an even greater number of the region’s top vocal talents.

Students experience a variety of choral styles and musical literature, from opera and vocal jazz to classic Lutheran anthems and Gospel hymns. Frequent performance opportunities are a must, Mennicke said, along with numerous solo opportunities that celebrate individual gifts. “On tour, we’ll have dozens of different students doing solos,” he said.

Concordia’s choral music program emphasizes a spirit of cooperation rather than competition. In this way, students make close connections. Lifelong friendships often take root in choir - sometimes, even love blossoms. “We celebrate at least one choir wedding every year,” Mennicke joked.

Recently, nearly 300 past and present choir members relived fond memories, coming together for the first-ever All-Choir Reunion as part of the Homecoming 2007 celebration. After a morning rehearsal with Mennicke, past CSP choir directors David Krause and Robert Leininger, and current Jubilate director Shari Speer, inspired the gathered assembly with a special performance during the noon dedication of the newly constructed Cross of Christ Fellowship Center and remodeled Chapel.

Bob (’55) and Sally (’55) Cordes both participated in the reunion choir. “It was a very nice experience to perform with so many singers,” Sally said. “Having sung in the Choral Club [as CSP students], we were anxious to sing for this event. I was so pleased we were able to sing ‘The Church’s One Foundation,’ which was the hymn the Choral Club used for processional at every concert. To this day, I can sing the whole hymn from memory!”

The memorable experiences of the All-Choir Reunion event were a testament to the choral music program’s foundation as a community based in Christ. “I believe a choir is one of the finest examples of how a Christian community can work and live together,” Mennicke said. “It brings together this wildly diverse group of individuals, but by the miraculous grace of God, they are drawn together in harmony and unity, taking them beyond worldly success to eternal significance. Ultimately, it’s the most satisfying way (to paraphrase Acts 17:28) to ‘live and move and have our being.’ That’s what we hope our singers take with them when they move out into the world - and when they come back to visit us in the future!”