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. 

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.

Rehearsals for Clinton’s annual Messiah presentation will be on Monday nights, beginning November 14, at 7:00 pm, and are open to all who would like to sing. Join us in the Great Hall of First Presbyterian Church, 400 5th Ave S, Clinton. Park in the back parking lot, with overflow parking in the alley across the street behind Gateway Travel. Enter the office or elevator door and make your way to the second floor.

We will have scores to borrow. If you wish to purchase your own, Tegeler Music will have some for sale at rehearsal for $10, we use the orange Watkins-Shaw edition. If you own the G. Schirmer score, you’ll need to write in a few minor changes.

The Messiah Concert will be on Sunday, December 18 at 2pm at Zion Lutheran Church, 439 3rd Ave S, Clinton. This is year 2 in the rotation, performing Part 1 plus selections from Parts 2 & 3 with piano accompaniment. Karl Wolf is directing, and Christine Holmer is our pianist.

Thanks for being a part of this 90 year tradition in our community!

Thanks so much for your support this past year. Want to stay up-to-date on RiverChor and Messiah happenings, for both singers and listeners? Please use the E-mail list sign up in the sidebar to have it delivered right to your inbox! ——–>>>

RiverChor will begin preparing for their upcoming concert, which will be Sunday, April 24, 2022 at Zion Lutheran in Clinton. Are you interested in singing? Drop us a line and we’ll have a folder ready for you!

Mark your calendar, as RiverChor is in rehearsals and plan to present their Fall Concert on Sunday, November 21, 2021 at 3:00pm at Zion Lutheran Church in Clinton, Iowa.

Due to the nature of singing and current events, RiverChor is postponing our concert. We will resume in the fall to bring you ‘With Hope, We Shall Rise’.

RiverChor is auditioning for new members! No need to prepare anything, just drop by Zion Lutheran Church in Clinton between 1:00 and 3:00 pm. The actual audition will take about 10 minutes as our directors get to know you and your voice.

This year’s schedule is:

Fall Concert
November 17, 2019, 3:00pm,
Zion Lutheran Church, Clinton, Iowa

Messiah Sing-a-Long
December 1, 2019, 3:00pm,
Location TBA, Clinton, Iowa

RiverChor with Clinton Symphony
December 14, 2019, 7:30 pm,
Clinton High School, Clinton, Iowa

Spring Concert
April 19, 2020, 3:00pm,
Zion Lutheran Church, Clinton, Iowa

We rehearse on Monday evenings, from 7-9 pm in Clinton, IA.

RiverChor, the Ashford University Choir, Clinton community singers, and Clinton orchestra members are in final preparations for Handel’s “Messiah”.  The performance is at 2:00 pm on Sunday, December 6, at Zion Lutheran Church in Clinton, Iowa.  The performance is free, however offerings are appreciated to defray expenses.  Please come out and be part of a Clinton tradition since the 1930’s!!

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