NEWS INDEX Archives 2004 August

Concert choir to perform in 9/11 observance on U. of I. campus

Melissa Mitchell, News Editor
217-333-5491; melissa@uiuc.edu

8/26/04

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — The University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Concert Choir will present a 9/11 observance performance, beginning promptly at 7:46 a.m. on that date, in Smith Hall, 805 S. Mathews Ave., Urbana.

The 20-minute musical observance is free and open to the public.

According to Karl Kramer, the director of the School of Music, the start time of the program coincides with the exact time that American Airlines Flight 11 crashed into the north tower of the World Trade Center in New York City on Sept. 11, 2001.

The solemn observance will feature just two musical pieces – both performed in their original Latin – and no readings or speeches, according to Concert Choir conductor and U. of I. music professor Chester Alwes.

The program opens with Gregorio Allegri’s “Miserere,” a setting of Psalm 51 composed for the Choir of the Sistine Chapel and performed just once a year during holy week. Following the performance of “Miserere,” at 8:03 a.m. – the approximate time that United Airlines Flight 175 slammed into the south tower of the World Trade Center – a moment of silence will be observed. The choir will then intone “O vos omnes,” by Tomas Luis de Victoria.

“At the conclusion of the Victoria, people may stay and reflect, or leave,” Alwes said.