It’s Friday afternoon, almost at the end of the work week, near the end of the month of May, and almost the end of the college choir season. The last two of the college programs in the between two colleges area will finish their choral seasons in just six days, that being the choirs of Mount San Antonio College, tonight and tomorrow night, and the Cal Poly Pomona choirs giving us a rousing send-off to summer with Mr. Orff, on Thursday in La Verne.
These may be the last official words of the college season, but not the last words on the college and community combination. Contrary to the opinions held by some friends, these schools are members of a nascent music community, unrecognized but not unreal. Like all communities, the colleges are tied to us in many ways, and we’re tied to them.
Most of these ties are unknown, unrecorded. Not known here are all the college student ties with local church choirs, local high school choirs, or chorales… those details somehow fail to find their way into concert programs or web sites. Also unknown are all the current and former faculty and staff from nearby colleges who sing in our church choirs and area chorales, and all the local college alumni bringing their talents to chorale or church music activity.
Better known are the churches with local faculty and staff serving as church musicians. There are churches in Upland, Ontario, Claremont, Pomona and La Verne with music staff they share with Mount San Antonio College, Cal Poly Pomona, Pomona College, and the Joint Music Program at the Claremont Colleges. There are other town and gown connections, where either the town or gown is tied to someplace a bit farther away, but are connected because of the connection here, making this community a common resource, which is part of being a community. The other ends of the ties this season that come to mind are at Azusa Pacific University, Cal State Los Angeles, Cal State Dominguez Hills and Chapman University.
You find no program details on the Mount SAC web site about the name music being performed at 7:30 p.m. tonight and Saturday. And it’s doubtful that their program will say much about their connections to the community, such as the Repertory Opera Company in Pomona, and a Claremont church, or about the occasion when their chamber singers came to sing for the hunger program at an Upland church. If you get the chance, why not ask the kids about their local ties?
The other local college finale is on Thursday, 4 June, at the La Verne Church of the Brethren, which shares its choir director with Cal Poly Pomona. The Cal Poly choirs are bringing us Carmina Burana by Orff, at 8 p.m.
Locally tied, but on a longer string
We want to support our community choral music connections even when they are not between the two colleges, and so draw your attention to the choirs and orchestra at UC Riverside, courtesy of its director’s connection to the Claremont Symphony. The UCR orchestra and choirs will offer you the Mozart Requiem at 8 p.m., Saturday, 30 May, and 3 p.m. Sunday, 31 May in Riverside.
More to come: Hope to be back in time to share, but you might want to note that local and locally connected performances involving the Claremont Chorale, the Mountainside Master Chorale, the Repertory Opera Company, Jouyssance, Vox Femina Los Angeles, and the Meistersingers of Orange County are all happening by the end of June. Someone you know is probably singing, so go to a show in June!