Una Vocis to Perform at Holy Family Catholic Church

{MEDIA_SOURCE}

Una Vocis means, “one voice” and is the appropriate name for this adult choir centered in Mason City.  Directed by Dennis Lee of Mason City and accompanied by Mary Jane Crail of Clear Lake, they perform rich and challenging choral music while fostering the talents of their members.

On December 15^th, at 7pm, this 32-member choir will enter the Holy Family Catholic Church in Mason City and perform a variety of Christmas Music.  Scheduled to be performed are the following songs:

·         Hodie Christus Natus Est – Sweelinck

·         In The Bleak Midwinter – Holst

·         The First Nowell – Arr. Paulus

·         I Saw Three Ships – Arr. Willcocks

·         Masters In This Hall – Arr. Hynson

·         O Magnum Mysterium – Lauridsen

·         Quatre Motets pours le temps de Noel – Poulenc

·         Magnificat – Pärt

·         All My Heart This Night Rejoices – Stroope

·         Sing We Now of Christmas – Prentice

·         Lo, How A Rose E’re Blooming – Arr. Sandstrom

·         The Angel Gabriel – Carney

·         Three Nativity Carols – Paulus

·         Still, Still, Still – Arr. Luboff

·         Silent Night – Arr. Sargent

The Una Vocis Choral Ensemble began as the passion and brain-child of founder and Artistic Director Dennis Lee. Lee studied and performed music throughout his years in the Mason City public school system, going on to study music at North Iowa Area Community College and Iowa State University. At Iowa State his music studies focused on vocal performance, choral conducting, and choral music literature.

After leaving the area for a while, Lee and his family returned to Mason City in 1995 and immediately became involved in music opportunities. Lee took a job as the choir director for the First Congregational Church in Mason City and also served as a regular substitute for First Presbyterian Church in Mason City. Then, in 1997 Lee flipped his responsibilities and accepted the position of Director of Music at First Presbyterian Church, while continuing to direct at First Congregational; he did this until the spring of 1998.

In the spring of 1998 First Presbyterian hosted its first annual presentation of Handel’s Messiah under Lee’s direction. The Messiah event included singers and orchestra members from around North Iowa and continued annually for several years; after the Messiah event in 2001, the frequency of this performance was reduced to every other year. Many of the North Iowa Messiah Choir members wanted to sing throughout the year and looked to Lee for opportunities.

In response to the urging of many fine musicians and his own passion for creating wonderful choral music, Lee decided to found a new auditioned adult choral ensemble in North Iowa. After much planning and preparation of music, Una Vocis held auditions in January 2005. The initial group had its work cut out for it. They were slated to join together with the First Presbyterian Church adult choir to premiere a new eight-part a cappella Stephen Paulus work.  This event was to honor the church’s centennial celebration. Una Vocis rose quickly to the challenge and performed its first concert, 'A Century of Choral Music,' to complement the world premiere event of the Paulus piece.

Since that first concert, Una Vocis Choral Ensemble has performed two main concerts per year, each showcasing rich, challenging choral music. The group has grown from its original 24 fine voices to 32 and continues to perform under the direction of it’s original founder, Dennis Lee.

A wonderful night out for the family, this concert is a great way to celebrate the holiday season.  If you miss the opportunity to see them this month, they’ll be performing a spring concert sometime during the month of May at a location yet to be determined. For more information, call 641.424.0533.