Juanita K. Hammons Hall for the Performing Arts Archives

Missouri State University hosts 28th annual President’s Concert

April 18, 2025 by Lynn M. Lansdown

The Missouri State University President’s Concert celebrates its 28th year with performances of Jocelyn Hagen’s “The Notebooks of Leonardo da Vinci” and Adolphus Hailstork’s “I Will Lift Up Mine Eyes.”

The concert begins at 3:30 p.m. April 27 at the Juanita K. Hammons Hall for the Performing Arts.

Admission is free and open to the public.

The university’s Grand Chorus and Symphony Orchestra will perform under the direction of Dr. Erin E. Plisco, associate director of choral studies in the Department of Music.

The Grand Chorus, which has over 200 student participants, is prepared by Plisco and Dr. Cameron LaBarr, Clif and Gail Smart Professor of Music and director of choral studies.

The orchestra, prepared by orchestra director Dr. Yi-Ping Chen, has roughly 60 students.

World-renowned choir to perform at Hammons Hall March 13

February 24, 2025 by Lynn M. Lansdown

The Tuks Camerata, one of South Africa’s top choirs, will perform with Missouri State University’s Chorale at the Juanita K. Hammons Hall for the Performing Arts 7:30 p.m. March 13.

High school choirs from Nixa and Republic will also perform. Daniel Gutierrez conducts the Nixa choir, and Chandler Cooper conducts the Republic choir. Gutierrez and Cooper are both MSU graduates.

MSU students, faculty and staff can receive up to two complimentary tickets by presenting their Bearpass ID at the box office. Tickets can also be purchased online.

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Concert reflects range of musical styles

The Tuks Camerata and MSU Chorale will form a combined choir, said Dr. Cameron LaBarr, Clif and Gail Smart Professor in Music and Director of Choral Studies.

“This concert encapsulates the power that choral music has to bring people together,” LaBarr said. “Our two choirs come from different backgrounds, yet we are united in our love for communal music making.”

They will perform pieces that showcase the wide range of musical styles from the USA and South Africa and will later feature on an album they will record in March, he added.

“Working with the MSU Chorale is a little like being at home. There is so much similar to our approaches and philosophies pertaining to choral music,” said Dr. Michael Barrett-Berg, conductor of Tuks Camerata and Senior Lecturer at the University of Pretoria.

President’s Concert on April 28 to feature masterwork performances

April 16, 2024 by Lynn M. Lansdown

The MSU Grand Chorus and MSU Symphony Orchestra will join forces to perform the annual President’s Concert Sunday, April 28 at 3:30 p.m. at the Juanita K. Hammons Hall for the Performing Arts.

The concert is free and open to the public. Tickets are not required.

A long-standing, end-of-year tradition

Conducted by Dr. Cameron LaBarr, Clif and Gail Smart professor in music and director of choral studies, the annual President’s Concert is a long-standing, end-of-year tradition presented by the Department of Music.

The orchestra is prepared by Dr. Chris Kelts, director of orchestral studies, and the choirs are prepared by Dr. Erin Plisco, associate director of choral studies, and LaBarr.

“Seeing and hearing the caliber of musicians on stage creating beautiful music together is truly amazing,” LaBarr said. “It is one of my favorite events of the year.”

This also will be Clif Smart’s final President’s Concert to sponsor as president of MSU.

President Clif Smart stands at podium with orchestra on stage — President Clif Smart speaks at the 2016 President’s Concert performed that year at the Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts in Kansas City. Photo credit: Bob Linder, Missouri State University.

Soloists have special connections to MSU

This year’s concert will feature four soloists: Kara Ann McBain (soprano), Caitlin Moore (mezzo-soprano), Brandon Michael Nase (tenor) and Jared Swope (baritone).

Each soloist has a special connection to MSU, according to LaBarr.

McBain is a graduate of MSU who studied voice with Dr. Carol Chapman and sang in the MSU Chorale, LaBarr said. She has recorded commercially as a soloist on two of the Chorale’s albums.

Swope is a graduate of MSU who studied with Dr. Chris Thompson and also sang in the MSU Chorale. He has completed graduate degrees at University of Notre Dame and Yale University and now sings professionally around the world.

Nase is currently serving as guest artist in the Department of Music for the 2023-2024 academic year.

Moore and LaBarr met when LaBarr was a faculty member at Lee University. Moore sang professionally in the Tennessee Chamber Chorus, which LaBarr conducted at the time. Moore is now at Colorado Mesa University. [Read more…] about President’s Concert on April 28 to feature masterwork performances