Choral concert celebrates diversity and community through music

Love, Joy & Peace: A Choral Celebration! Date: Friday, March 14 Time: 7 p.m. Location: Lehman Auditorium at EMU, 1191 Park Road, Harrisonburg, VA Cost: Free, with suggested donation of $10

Three choirs from diverse musical and cultural traditions will join together for a concert held at EMU this week.

The event, Love, Joy & Peace: A Choral Celebration!, will be held at Lehman Auditorium on Friday, March 14, at 7 p.m. Admission is free, with a suggested donation of $10.

Dr. David Berry, director of the music program at EMU, described the event as a big celebration. “The idea for this concert was truly born out of a sense of community,” he said. “We’re not just bringing together different styles of music, but also we’re bringing together people from different communities.”

The concert will feature performances by:

• the EMU Chamber Singers, the university’s auditioned touring chamber choir, directed by Professor Benjamin Bergey, singing songs of hope and unity from its recent spring break tour;
• the EMU Gospel Choir, a talented group of students directed by EMU senior Kay Pettus, delivering uplifting gospel music; and 
• the Kush Anglican Choir, a choir from a Sudanese congregation in Harrisonburg, directed by EMU senior Rita Toto, performing traditional Sudanese songs in Arabic. 

Berry first heard the latter choir perform at a fundraiser last July at A Bowl of Good in Harrisonburg. The event supported Pax Dei for Nuba, a nonprofit raising awareness of the humanitarian crisis in Sudan. “Their choir sounded incredible, and they perform a variety of music, including songs from their culture and in their native language,” Berry said. “I knew we had to invite them to perform on campus.”

After each choir performs their own selection of songs, the three vocal ensembles will combine on stage to sing “Let’s Come Together,” an original composition written by guest artist Makinto.

Makinto, a talented multi-instrumentalist and African Soul artist studying at Eastern Mennonite Seminary, will also perform solo selections throughout the evening and collaborate with Berry on a piano duet for the final musical number. 

Makinto previously performed as a guest artist at EMU’s 2023 Music Gala Concert. He and his wife, Mukarabe, co-founded Amahoro International, a mission organization promoting peace and development in East Africa. Learn more about his journey to EMU here!

The EMU Department of Music partnered with the Center for Interfaith Engagement and Multicultural Student Services to present this concert. It is sponsored by the Music, Peace and Justice grant, in conjunction with the Music & Peacebuilding major.