Waukesha Choral Union Presents The American Spirit to Open 2012-2013 Season

Sept. 28, 2012 - PRLog -- Waukesha, WI – Waukesha Choral Union will open its 2012-2013 concert season with “The American Spirit” on Saturday, October 13, 2012 at 8:00 p.m. Ernest “Ernie” Brusubardis III, will conduct this performance in Shattuck Auditorium on the Carroll University campus. Waukesha Choral Union will share the stage with Oconomowoc Chamber Orchestra.  

“This concert features inspiring works by two American composers who uplifted a nation,” said Brusubardis.

Pieces to be performed include David Diamond's “Rounds for String Orchestra,” commissioned during WWII to uplift the American people, and “An American Civil War Memorial” by Dr. Michael Karasis. This oratorio weaves choir, narrator, and orchestra to depict battles, recite letters from home, and raise the American spirit in brotherhood.

Single concert tickets are $15 for adults, $13 for seniors/students, $4 children 11 and under. Season ticket packages, with savings of up to twenty percent over regular prices, are available through October 13, 2012. Tickets are available from Waukesha Choral Union members, at all Waukesha State Bank locations, online at http://www.ChoralUnion.org, by phone at 414-297-9310, and at the door.

David Diamond (July 9, 1915 – June 13, 2005) was an American composer of classical music.  He was born in Rochester, NY, studied at the Cleveland Institute of Music and the Eastman School of Music, also receiving lessons from Roger Sessions in New York City and Nadia Boulanger in Paris.  Diamond won a number of awards and is considered one of the preeminent American composers of his generation.

Dr. Michael Karasis began studying the violin and composition while in surgical training in Springfield, Illinois during the mid-1970s.  Over the ensuing years, he has composed a number of works for both chamber groups and full orchestra.

Roberta Carpenter, Music Director of Oconomowoc Chamber Orchestra is a Wisconsin native, versatile musician, conductor, violinist, and teacher.  Carpenter has directed orchestras in the Czech Republic, Poland, the Whitewater, Beloit/Janesville, and Harper Symphonies, Vidin Philharmonic, and the Oconomowoc, Concord, and Appleton Chamber Orchestras. Roberta has served on the faculty of the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater and Carroll University.  She has also taught in the extension programs for Alverno College and Lawrence University. Roberta completed the coursework for a Doctoral Degree in Violin Performance and Orchestral Conducting at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.  She holds Master of Music and Bachelor of the Fine Arts degrees from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, graduating with honors.

Ernest Brusubardis III, Artistic Director of 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-Dzimente Latvian Choir, a podium he shares with his father. His expertise in this latter pursuit has earned him the chief conductorship of Latvian Song Festivals in the United States, Canada, and Latvia. As a music theater enthusiast, he conducts the orchestra for the annual productions at Hartford Union High School and boasts a record as music director for community theater productions throughout Southeastern Wisconsin.

Oconomowoc Chamber Orchestra, Roberta Carpenter, Music Director, is the professional ensemble within the OCO parent organization. The Oconomowoc Chamber Orchestra performed a “Debut Concert” featuring two compositions written for Lake Country. The full concert was recorded, and for two years, photographic, video, aerial and artistic images of Lake Country were assembled, and then set to the music from the concert. DVD and CD versions of the concert received the 3rd place award in The American Prize Awards for recordings in the arts. The OCO Parent Organization also hosts the Lake Country Orchestra, which is open to area avocational musicians. http://www.oconchamberorch.org.

Waukesha Choral Union has been musically active in the community for over 60 years. WCU was featured in WISN-TV’s “Season to Celebrate” broadcast during Christmas of 2011.  Originally a combination of Carroll College students and community singers, it took its present form as an auditioned choir in 1978. Waukesha Choral Union derives its strength and quality from its members’ passion for singing and is always seeking new voices. Auditions are held by appointment. Recent collaborative partners include the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra, Bel Canto Chorus, Milwaukee Choristers, Carroll University Choirs, and the choirs of Waukesha South High School, Muskego High School, and Hartford Union High School. For more information visit http://www.choralunion.org.