A gospel and jazz concert and an alumni tour to Canada are set for the University of Alabama at Birmingham Gospel Choir, in continued celebration of the choir’s 20th anniversary.
Make plans to attend and enjoy a “cool and inspirational” spring concert Sunday, April 10, featuring the choir led by director Kevin P. Turner. The UAB Gospel Choir is a class in the College of Arts and Sciences’ Department of Music. Known for its vast repertoire and eclectic mix of shows, the choir has worked to make this anniversary concert historic, enjoyable and uplifting, Turner says.
Two American-born music genres will take center stage during this 90-minute concert presented in UAB’s Alys Stephens Performing Arts Center’s Jemison Concert Hall. The evening will include rapid-fire staccato and ad-lib vocal styles and freestyle and improvisational melodic phrasing that incorporates American jazz while staying true to the rudiments of American gospel, Turner says. Special guests will include E. Marie Gray and Ashley Sankey.
The show will begin at 6 p.m. in the Alys Stephens Center, 1200 10th Ave. South. Tickets are $7; $5 for UAB students and employees with valid ID. Tickets are available in advance and at the door; advance purchase is recommended. Group discounts are available with advance purchase. Proceeds from this concert will assist with costs related to the choir’s Canada tour in May. Call the ASC Box Office at 205-975-2787 or the UAB Ticket Office at 205-934-8000 for tickets.
| Donations for the choir’s tour make a huge impact on the students and their experience, and are welcomed. Contact Renee Page-Nash in the UAB Department of Music at 205-934-7376. Well-wishers may “like” the UAB Gospel Choir on Facebook. |
The UAB Gospel Choir will depart Monday, May 9, for its 20th Anniversary Alumni Tour on motor coach with approximately 45 singers and three members of the band to accompany. The itinerary includes an evening concert in Dayton, Ohio, with two historically black colleges/universities; two nights in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, with a concert at Mississauga Seventh-day Adventist Church; stops in Niagara Falls and New York City; a concert in Long Island, New York, at St. Paul Community Church; a stop in Philadelphia and a concert in Wilmington, Delaware, at Highway Word of Faith Family Worship Center. Additional performances and events at schools and colleges will be added to the itinerary, Turner says.
Donations for the choir’s tour make a huge impact on the students and their experience, and are welcomed, Turner says. Contact Renee Page-Nash in the UAB Department of Music at 205-934-7376. Well-wishers may “like” the UAB Gospel Choir on Facebook.
Since its inception in 1995, the UAB Gospel Choir has brought American gospel music from the choir stand to the classroom and developed a powerhouse strategy of turning out topnotch talent and presenting sold-out concerts. This highly decorated and award-winning ensemble of singers, dancers, mime teams and musicians has had nationally distributed CD recordings, performed to more than 5 million viewers on NBC’s “Today” show, and had No. 1 songs on amazon.com and XM Satellite radio. The choir has proudly waved the UAB flag for 20 years locally, nationally, and on self-funded international tours to London and the Caribbean. The UAB Gospel Choir is open to all students regardless of major. One credit hour is earned for participating. Registration is required to participate.