Sunday afternoon, the Okaloosa Chamber Singers' spring concert, "Now Let Us Sing," returned to its Crestview roots, drawing an appreciative audience of nearly 70 choral music lovers to First United Methodist Church.
The afternoon was an overture to Holy Week and a musical ode to spring, starting with a stirring performance of Franz Schubert's "Gloria (Mass in G)." Five Renaissance motets followed, displaying the 23-member chorus' skill.
The concert’s second half was a bit lighter, including five Renaissance madrigals and two "hill" songs, one sung in a Chinese dialect and the other, "Afternoon on a Hill," based on a poem by Edna St. Vincent Millay.
After a Moses Hogan arrangement of "This Little Light of Mine," the concert concluded with the lively "Now Let Us Sing!" by Gwyneth Walker, drawing the audience to its feet for a sustained standing ovation.
While I can't claim familiarity with many works the Chamber Singers performed, it was no hindrance to my enjoyment of the concert. It was an opportunity to wallow in elation of the beautiful music performed.
When I hear people say, "There's never anything to do around here," I wish such naysayers could've joined me in the audience for these two concerts, the diversity of their content rivaled only by the sheer pleasure I found in each.
Contact News Bulletin Arts & Entertainment Editor Brian Hughes at 682-6524 or brianh@crestviewbulletin.com. Follow him on Twitter @cnbBrian.
This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: REVIEW: Okaloosa Chamber Singers perform diverse genres