Author Archives: RiverChor

Celebrating 20 Years of Song

RiverChor Community Choir is pleased to present their 20th Anniversary concert on Sunday, November 17 at 2:00pm at Zion Lutheran Church, 439 3rd Ave S in Clinton. Admission to the concert is free, offerings are welcome and appreciated. 

The choir was founded in 2004 by a group of dedicated “Messiah” singers to fill an empty spot on the Zion Concert Series.  The current 50 member group is proud to celebrate twenty years of presenting quality choral music to the Gateway area. 


As in that first concert, the traditional hymn “Come Ye That Love the Lord”, arranged by Parker/Shaw, will welcome the audience as the choir ‘joins in a song of sweet accord’, and asks that ‘the sorrows of the mind be banished from this place’.  Dutch organist and composer Jan Pieterszoon Sweelinck’s “Cantate Domino” is a late Renaissance piece that weaves five lines together into a lilting fugue set to Psalm 96.

The Ola Gjello arrangement of “Ubi Caritas” has been a favorite across the years; Christine Holmer will be featured on this piece in a new adaptation of Gjello’s piano improvisation.  The choir will round out the first half of the concert with two new pieces.  “O Love” by Elaine Hagenberg is set to a poem by George Matheson in 1882.  The hopeful, yet at times dissonant, musical lines explore the beauty and heartache of a lost love, enhanced by cellist Mia Wright.  Karl Wolf will be featured in “Ain’t Got Time to Die”, a rousing syncopated spiritual by Hall Johnson.

Founding director Dr. Robert Engelson will return to direct the second half, as the choir is joined by alumni.  “Song of Triumph” by Dale Grotenhuis is another favorite opener, with a crisp multimeter fanfare, rich chant, and soaring alleluias. Charles Villar Stanford’s “Beati Quorum Via” breaks into gorgeous six part harmonies.  RiverChor’s ladies are honored to present Dr. Thea Engelson’s adaptation of “Er, der Herrlichste von Allen” by Robert Schumann. The men will follow up with a toe-tapping rendition of Pepper Choplin’s “Lay Up Your Treasures in Heaven” featuring bass James Schnitzmeyer.

“The Awakening” by Joseph M. Martin recounts a dream of a silent and melancholy world without music, yet it cannot be contained as the choir calls all to “Awake!  Let music live!”.  

“The Road Home” by Stephen Paulus is a fitting conclusion binding all who have been touched by the choir over the past twenty years.  Invoking the wistfulness of a prodigal traveler, the closing line calls to us: ‘There is no such beauty as where you belong, rise up, follow me, I will lead you home’.

RiverChor was established in February 2004 and draws its singers from many communities in eastern Iowa and western Illinois. The group is under the direction of Karl Wolf,  Christine Holmer serves as pianist.  Concerts are presented every spring and fall. RiverChor has been the core group for the annual Messiah concerts and has been featured in concerts with the Clinton and Muscatine Symphony Orchestras. For more information you are invited to visit https://RiverChor.org

RiverChor 20th Anniversary Concert

RiverChor turns 20, and we invite you to celebrate with us! Alumni are returning, including our founder Dr. Rob Engelson, who will direct the second half of the concert. We’ll present a number our favorite pieces, and introduce some new favs.

Program
Come Ye That Love the Lord – arr. Robert Shaw (1916-1999) / Alice Parker (1925-2023)
Cantate Domino – Jan Pieterszoon Sweelinck (1562-1621)
Ubi Caritas – Ola Gjeilo
O Love – Elaine Hagenberg (1979)
Ain’t Got Time To Die – Hall Johnson (1888-1970)
~Intermission~
Song of Triumph – Dale Grotenhuis (1931-2012)
Beati Qorum Via – Charles Villiers Stanford (1852-1924)
Er der Herlichste von allen – Robert Schumann, arr. Dr. Thea Sikora Engelson (SSA)
Lay Up Your Treasures in Heaven – Pepper Choplin (1957) (TTBB)
The Awakening – Gilbert M. Martin (1941)
The Road Home – Stephen Paulus (1949-2014)

The concert is free, offerings are welcome and much appreciated. There will be a reception to follow the concert, please join us in celebrating this milestone of sharing choral music with the Gateway area.

RiverChor 20th Anniversary Concert
Sunday, November 17, 2:00pm
Zion Lutheran Church
439 3rd Ave S, Clinton, IA
Free Admission, Offerings Welcome
Reception to follow the concert

Alumni, if you’d like to sing on part of all of the 2nd half, CLICK HERE for information and signups.

RiverChor Launches 20th Anniversary Season

RIverChor Community Choir will begin rehearsals for our 20th Anniversary Season on Monday, September 9, from 7:00-9:00 pm in the Great Hall of First Presbyterian Church, 400 5th Ave S, in Clinton.  Area adult and high school singers are invited to join the group in preparation for the fall concert, which will be on Sunday, November 17, 2:00pm at Zion Lutheran Church, 439 3rd Ave S, in Clinton.  Singers, please register by sending us a message via the Contact Us page.

Several celebratory events will highlight the year.  For the fall concert, alumni will reunite with the choir as founding director Dr. Rob Engelson returns to the podium to share favorite choral works.  RiverChor will anchor the annual community Messiah Sing-Along in December.  The annual spring concert in March will be a collaboration between the choir and local high schools.  At the end of April, RiverChor will proudly join the Clinton Symphony Orchestra in performing Mozart’s Requiem. 

RiverChor Spring Concert Set for April 28

RiverChor is in rehearsal for their spring concert, which will take place on Sunday, April 28 at 2:00pm at Zion Lutheran Church in Clinton. The program is as follows:

Exultate justi in Domino – Viadana
Domine ad adjuvandum me festina – Martini
Die Nachtigall – Mendelssohn
Ubi Caritas et Amor – Duruflé
I Will Arise and Go To Jesus – arr. Parker 
Wondrous Love – arr. Parker
On The Common Ground – arr. Parker

In The Valley – Podd
Heaven Somewhere – arr. Hatfield
Song for the Mira – MacGillvray
Choral Variations on “Ah, Holy Jesus” – Petrich
Choose Something Like A Star – Thompson
Bridge Over Troubled Water – arr. Kirby Shaw

Experience Handel’s “Messiah” Sunday, Dec 17th

RiverChor and Gateway Area Singers present Clinton’s annual performance of “Messiah” on Sunday, December 17 at 2:00pm at Zion Lutheran Church, 439 3rd Ave S in Clinton. Celebrating 92 years of tradition, the group will be performing much of Handel’s famous oratorio with orchestra and many local soloists. Admission is free, offerings are welcome and appreciated.

Rev. Frederick Schoenbohn with a group of singers called the Apollo Choral Society first began the annual tradition in 1931. Over the years, community singers have been directed by Jim Winn, John DeHaan, Dorothy Rathje, Mark Kapusinski, and Rob Engelson. In his third year at the baton is Karl Wolf, recently retired choir director of Clinton High School.  Christine Holmer serves as pianist, and Julie Marston heads up the orchestra.

At the tender age of 11, George Frideric Handel’s prodigious organ playing skills caught the ear of a nobleman, which changed the trajectory of his life from becoming a law student to being lauded by the likes of Mozart and Beethoven as the “greatest composer who ever lived”.  Handel began his career with operas, but turning his hand to religious oratorios allowed him greater musical freedom.  

“Messiah” was written over an astounding period of only three to four weeks, and debuted to a record crowd of 700 people in 1742.  The work is in three parts: the first detailing the prophesied birth of Jesus Christ; the second exalts His sacrifice for humankind; and the final section heralds His resurrection. Throughout his music, Handel focuses on the human response to the divine, perhaps why this work has continued to be so popular as it is performed by groups across the world for Christmas and Easter.

“Our singers from across the Gateway Area have been hard at work since October to brush up on movements that are familiar, and those we only perform in this year 3 of our cycle”, explains RiverChor manager Brooke Logan.  “We invite you to step away from the busyness of the season to enjoy this truly special experience this Sunday afternoon.”

RiverChor presents “Heaven, Somewhere” on November 12

RiverChor Community Choir is pleased to present their fall concert on Sunday, November 12 at 2:00pm at Zion Lutheran Church, 439 3rd Ave S in Clinton.  The group, made up of approximately 40 singers from the Gateway Area, is under the direction of Karl Wolf, with Christine Holmer as accompanist.  Admission to the concert is free, offerings are welcome and appreciated.  

Entitled “Heaven, Somewhere”, the concert will explore several genres of songs relating to the theme. The anthem “At The Round Earth’s Imagined Corners” by Williametta Spencer is a setting of a poem by the famous English poet John Donne and features both strident sounds reminiscent of trumpets, and gentle flowing text. Spencer is an American composer, musicologist, and teacher. She received the Southern California Vocal Association National Composition Award for this composition.

“If Ye Love Me, Keep My Commandments” is an elegant setting of John 14:15-17a by one of the most significant English composers of the High Renaissance, Thomas Tallis.  The motet “Ave Verum Corpus” was written for the Feast of Corpus Christi by W. A. Mozart in 1791 for his friend Anton Stoll who was the church musician of St. Stephan in Baden bei Wien. Johannes Brahms competes this historical trio with his setting of “How Lovely is Thy Dwelling Place” (Wie lieblich sind deine Wohnungen). One of the most well known and beautiful works of Brahms, this setting of a portion of Psalm 84 is from the fourth movement of his famous German Requiem.

A favorite of the choir, “Give Me Jesus”, arranged by Larry L. Fleming for his series “Three About Jesus”, showcases all the sections of the choir, coming together in rich chords with a soaring climax.  Josephine Poelinitz’s arrangement of “A City Called Heaven” challenges the choir with the role of accompanist to a gospel solo. 

You’ll be tapping your toes to two selections arranged by William Dawson, one of the most significant arrangers of African-American Spirituals. He began his teaching career in the Kansas City public school system, followed by a tenure with the Tuskegee Institute from 1931–1956. While there he developed the Tuskegee Institute Choir into an internationally renowned ensemble.  “Soon Ah Will Be Done” pairs a steady droning beat with punctuated dynamics, while “Ain’a That Good News” is a straight out cheerful proclamation.  Houston Bright’s “I Hear A Voice A-Prayin’” rounds out this set, listen as each new theme is introduced and then returns in a musical palindrome.

Rounding out the concert will be solos and ensembles put together by members of the choir.  RiverChor manager Brooke Logan remarks, “While we enjoy singing as a group, it’s a special treat to hear our friends perform music they are passionate about.  I’m excited to hear what they’ve worked up to share with us.”

Community members are encouraged to join in singing when rehearsals for Clinton’s annual Messiah resume on Monday, November 13, 7-9 pm at First Presbyterian Church in Clinton.  The Messiah performance will take place on December 17.

Clinton Messiah Rehearsals to Begin October 23

One of Clinton’s longest-running Christmas traditions is here again – rehearsals are starting for Clinton’s annual performance of George Frideric Handel’s oratorio “Messiah.”

Community members are invited to join with RiverChor to make up the choir which will be accompanied this year by an orchestra.  Director Karl Wolf notes, “The last full performance of “Messiah” in Clinton was 2018, so we’d like to get an early start and blow the cobwebs off the movements we only perform in year three of the cycle.”

Rehearsals begin October 23 in the Great Hall of First Presbyterian Church, 400 Fifth Ave. South, the entrance is from the parking lot in the back of the church. Scores will be available to borrow for those who need them; singers who have their own scores are invited to use them. The rehearsals on October 23 and 30 will be from 7pm to 8pm.  No rehearsal will be held November 6 as RiverChor prepares for their fall concert.  Messiah rehearsals will resume November 13, from 7-9pm, and continue each subsequent Monday until the free concert scheduled for Sunday, December 17, at 2 p.m. at Zion Lutheran Church in Clinton.

Since the first performance in 1931, there have been only three years when an annual ‘Messiah’ performance didn’t take place. Beginning in the early ‘90s a three-year cycle was established where the first year is a sing-along held at a Clinton church; the second year is Part I and selections from Part II with piano, this year is the third year of our cycle, which means we perform virtually the whole work with orchestra. It’s an incredible tradition that has featured thousands of singers giving of their time and talent to present this wonderful gift to the Clinton community.

RiverChor Announces 2023-2024 Season

RiverChor Community Choir is excited to start another season. With a theme of “Heaven, Somewhere”, the group will be working on the following pieces for their fall concert, which will be on Sunday, November 12.

At The Round Earth’s Imagined Corners – Williametta Spencer
If Ye Love Me, Keep My Commandments – Thomas Tallis
Wie lieblich sind deine Wohnungen – Johannes Brahms
Ave Verum Corpus – W. A. Mozart
Give Me Jesus – arr. Larry L. Fleming
A City Called Heaven – arr. Josephine Poelinitz
Soon Ah Will Be Done – arr. William Dawson
Ain’a That Good News – arr. William Dawson
I Hear A Voice A-Prayin’ – Houston Bright

The community is then invited to join us for the annual performance of Handel’s Messiah, this will be year 3 of our cycle, which means much of the work with orchestra. That concert will take place Sunday, December 17 at 2pm. RiverChor’s Spring concert will take place on Sunday, April 28, 2024.

The choir draws from the Gateway Area of Iowa and Illinois, including Clinton, DeWitt, Low Moor, Fulton, and Morrison. The group meets for rehearsals form 7-9pm on Monday evenings in Clinton, and will start September 11. If you are interested in joining the choir, please drop us a line via our contact form.

RiverChor presents “The Road Home

CLINTON – RiverChor presents its annual spring concert at 2:00 p.m. Sunday, April 30 at Zion Lutheran Church, 439 Third Ave. South. The concert is free and the public is cordially invited; collection plates will be available for donations.

The concert, entitled “The Road Home”, takes us on a number of journeys, emotional and physical.  The first two pieces explore the loss of a loved one. “David’s Lamentation,” penned by William Billings, is first presented in the tradition of Appalachian Shaped Note singing using solfege before adding the words of the piece.  Samuel Barber’s “Anthony O Daly” evokes relentless grief with its tonality, word pictures, and a continual drone of ‘Anthony’ that grows into a wail of despair.

“Regina Coeli” by W. A. Mozart is a joyous riot of runs and refrains of Alleluia borrowed from Handel’s “Messiah”.  Double quartet Shauna Tegeler, Beth Yaklich, Karil Carr, Chris Meier,
AJ Weber, Terry Winter, Jim Schitzmeyer, and Brandon Winter take the solo sections that occur throughout the piece. Pianist Chris Holmer is assisted by violinists Kristen Jones and David Rosales.

In “The Lamentations of Jeremiah” by Z. Randall Stroope, the choir explores the wide range of emotions of the prophet as he mourned, wept, and cried out loudly in sorrowful anguish at the devastation of Jerusalem and greater loss of human life.

“How Can I Keep From Singing?” by Taylor Davis rounds out the first half of the concert and looks to the hope we have through life’s tribulations.  David Rosales on violin and Kristen Jones on clarinet lend their talents to this piece.

The choir returns after intermission to the organ loft, where they will present Egil Hovland’s tone poem, “Saul”, that brings to life the events of Acts 8 and 9.  Christine Holmer will showcase Zion’s newly refurbished organ, as John Montieth narrates. “Geistliches Lied” by Johannes Brahms will also feature the organ; the gorgeous melodies exhort us to be calm, content and hopeful in faith through life’s trials.

Descending from the loft, RiverChor’s Tenor and Bass sections will bring a smile to your face with “Pirate Song” by Tim Y. Jones.  Brandon Winter heads up the scurvy crew.  

The RiverChor Soprano and Alto sections follow up with  “Bring Me Little Water, Sylvie”, an arrangement by Robert Jones of a song attributed to Huddie Ledbetter.  Sara Dunne and Kristen Jones voice the call and response, while Greg Marston sets the groove on upright bass. 

The singers come together again for  “Bile Them Cabbage Down”,  a traditional folk tune arranged by Mack Wilburg.  Don’t try to make sense of the verses, just clap along with the joyous homecoming of the chorus.  Kristen Jones on fiddle sets the down-home tone, and tenor Justin Tegeler will take the helm on a couple verses.

“The Road Home”, our title piece by Stephen Paulus, invokes the wistfulness of a prodigal traveler.  Connie Swanson-DeSpain and Kristen Jones soar on the descant as we ponder the closing line of our concert, ‘There is no such beauty as where you belong, rise up, follow me, I will lead you home’.

RiverChor was established in February 2004 and draws its singers from many communities in eastern Iowa and western Illinois. The group is under the direction of Karl Wolf, while Christine Holmer serves as pianist.  Concerts are presented every spring and fall. RiverChor has been the core group for the annual Messiah concerts and has been featured in concerts with the Clinton and Muscatine Symphony Orchestras.