The William Baker Festival Singers, a 50-voice semi-professional chorale, celebrates the Music of Sean Sweeden, their fourth Composer-in-Residence. The concert will be Friday, February 20, 7:30 PM, at the St. Michael & All Angels Episcopal Church, 6630 Nall Avenue in Mission, Kansas. Tickets are available at the door, or online at FestivalSingers.org/concerts. Dr. Sweeden was appointed Composer-in-Residence in 2020 and has composed numerous new works for the Festival Singers and Choral Foundation ensembles, The February concert will feature 14 selections, including five being performed publicly for the very first time.
Highlights will include Sunward, a setting of the beloved poem “High Flight: by John Gillespie McGee, Jr., Alway Something Sings on a poem by Ralph Waldo Emerson, a new gospel selection, We Are Held, and even settings of popular selections Over the Rainbow, and Pure Imagination. The program also includes settings of beloved sacred texts, including In the Beginning, My Shepherd, and There Is No Rose. Sweeden, a professional percussionist as well as a singer and composer, utilizes exciting rhythmic elements in his music. Over 40 percussion instruments will be a part of the February concert.
Dr. Sean Sweeden, born 1987, is a native of northern Arkansas. He holds the Bachelor of Arts from Arkansas Tech University in Voice & Percussion, the Master of Music in Percussion Performance from the University of Arkansas, and the Doctor of Musical Arts in Percussion Performance from the UMKC Conservatory of Music.
The award-winning William Baker Festival Singers has performed in 14 states and the District of Columbia in some of America’s most prestigious venues. The choir has released two dozen recordings, including CDs graciously reviewed in The American Record Guide and other publications. WBFS is the second-place national winner of the American Prize for Choral Performance. The choir has been heard on numerous national programs, including NPR’s Performance Today, since coming to Kansas City in 1998. Please visit www.FestivalSingers.org/concerts for additional information.
