Composer Paula Foley Tillen
“I am thrilled and proud to have been invited to write for the Waukesha Choral Union, my own hometown's wonderful choral ensemble,” said Tillen. “It's been a particular delight for me throughout my professional life to be a part of developing the creativity of young people, and I welcome this opportunity to work collaboratively with a young artist.”
The student submission must be original. The subject of the text is at the creative discretion of the author. Entries are due by December 15, 2011. The Waukesha Choral Union Commission committee will select the winner by January 15th, 2012. A second phase of the project, involving student-created multi-media interpretation of the commission, will be announced in 2012.
“The mission of the Waukesha Choral Union encourages community outreach and educational efforts, and this contest accomplishes all that and more,” said Waukesha Choral Union artistic director Ernest Brusubardis, III. “The singing members and board are very excited about seeing a Waukesha student’s idea come to life in song.”
“This contest would not be possible without the financial support of our patrons, and a grant from Arts Waukesha and the Wisconsin Arts Board,” said Waukesha Choral Union board president Tom Custis. "Collaboration is a strong tradition within our organization. This project brings together many different local artists in a single celebration of music."
Paula Foley Tillen, a graduate of Waukesha’s Carroll University, has been a professional musician in southeastern Wisconsin for the past thirty years, and is much in demand as a composer, music director, pianist, vocal coach, and accompanist. Tillen’s compositions and arrangements have been performed by UW-Milwaukee performance groups, Mastersingers of Milwaukee, Milwaukee Choral Artists, Wisconsin Cream City Chorus, Windfall Theatre (Milwaukee), Choir of the Cathedral of St John the Evangelist (Milwaukee), the 2007 Michigan All-State Treble Choir, the 2008 North Central ACDA Women’s Honors Choir, Concentus Women’s Choir (Rochester, NY), Voci Women’s Vocal Ensemble (Berkeley, CA), the Lyric Singers of Calvin College (Grand Rapids, MI), Women’s Voices Chorus (Chapel Hill, NC) and on the nationally televised Service of Lessons & Carols from the Cathedral of St. John the Evangelist, (Milwaukee) in December, 2006. Tillen’
Ernest Brusubardis, III, artistic director of the Waukesha Choral Union, is a graduate of UW-Milwaukee with the Bachelor’s of Fine Arts in Music and the Master’s Degree in Music Education with an emphasis on choral conducting. His other choral directorships include the advanced ensembles of Hartford Union High School and the Brusubardis-
The Waukesha Choral Union has been musically active in the community for over 60 years. It produces four concerts each season between October and May. Originally a combination of the Carroll College student chorus and community singers named Waukesha Choral Society in 1949, the group became the Town and Gown in 1961 and the Waukesha Choral Union in 1974, taking its present form as an auditioned choir in 1978. Recent collaborative partners include the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra, Bel Canto Chorus of Milwaukee, Milwaukee Choristers, Carroll University Choirs, Waukesha South High School A Cappella Choir, Muskego High School Chorale and Chamber Choir, and the Hartford Union High School Concert Choir. For more information visit http://www.choralunion.org.
# # #
The Waukesha Choral Union, an auditioned community choir, continues a long tradition of collaborating with other musicians and groups, putting together pieces of the very colorful and diverse arts community in which we live for over 60 years.
Photo:
http://www.prlog.org/
