A large and enthusiastic audience enjoyed an exciting concert on Sunday, April 29^th as the Lutheran A Cappella Choir celebrated the conclusion of its 75^th Anniversary Season with “Voices of Praise” ringing from the rafters of St. Matthew’s Lutheran Church in Wauwatosa.  The featured work on the program was “Festival Te Deum” by K. Lee Scott, a work commissioned by the choir in celebration of their anniversary.  And the choir was honored to have Mr. Scott in attendance at both the dress rehearsal and the concert.  A cappella motets by J.S. Bach, Johannes Brahms and Johann Hermann Schein were also featured, as was Ralph Vaughan Williams’ thrilling setting of Psalm 90, “Lord, Thou Hast Been Our Refuge”.

Here are some comments from concert-goers:

“What an amazing, uplifting and heavenly afternoon!!”

“We loved the concert and were inspired by the music, which lifted our souls.”

“We were impressed not only by the music as it was sung, but also by the choir's diction, including its pronunciation of words in German.”

“What an amazing group of glorious voices.”

LAC is happy to announce that Mark Davidson has been appointed as the choir's new accompanist. Mark brings a wealth of experience to the position, most recently as the accompanist for the Bach Chamber Choir from 2009-2012. He is currently the Assistant Minister of Music at Trinity Lutheran Church in Waukesha.  Mark earned a Bachelor of Arts in Church Music from Bethany Lutheran College, Mankato, MN in 2001, and has also served as organist for other Lutheran parishes in Wisconsin, Illinois and Minnesota for the past 20 years.

He is a member of the American Guild of Organists (AGO) and the Association of Lutheran Church Musicians (ALCM), and serves as an accountant for the Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod (WELS) headquarters here in Milwaukee.  As much as we are sad to lose Kathy May as our treasured accompanist for the past 25 years, we are looking forward to working with Mark as we begin our 76th year of singing in service to our Lord.

A special thank you to all those at the beautiful Rockefeller Memorial Chapel in Chicago for hosting our choir on April 15, 2012 at their 11:00 a.m. interreligious service. The choir sang four songs and led hymns during the service. What an inspritation it was to sing in such a glorious monument dedicated to the worship of our Lord! The chapel is located on the campus of the University of Chicago at 5850 South Woodlawn, Chicago, Illinois 60637 (with a parking lot off University Avenue, the street behind the chapel) and can be reached at 773.702.2100 or http://rockefeller.uchicago.edu/.

Thanks to all who braved the winter weather to attend our Christmas concerts on December 9 at Christ the King Lutheran in Delafield and December 11 at St. Matthew Lutheran in Wauwatosa. I guess we made it worth your while, since you rewarded us with a standing ovation at both concerts! We love to sing, sure, but what a complete joy it is for us to know that our music in praise of the birth of Jesus enhanced your Christmas season. Thank you, thank you, thank you for coming!