Twenty dancers will be accompanied by 400 musicians under the direction of Texas State assistant music professor Jonathan Babcock in Carmina Burana on April 30. Chamber singers from Lehman and Hays high schools will join musicians from the Texas State Symphony, University Singers, and the Hill Country Youth Chorus for the production. (Courtesy photo)
STAFF REPORT
The School of Music at Texas State University will present Shay Ishii Dance Company’s performance of Carl Orff’s Carmina Burana April 30 at the Hays Performing Arts Center in Kyle.
The event will begin at 7:30 p.m. and feature the Texas State Festival Chorus and Orchestra, conducted by Jonathan Babcock. Admission is free and open to the public.
This visceral cantata uses a collection of 12th century Goliardic poetry to depict the progression of life, love and lust in the human spirit. This performance is based on Babcock’s 2003 research study on the work’s genesis and performance practice.
Babcock, an assistant professor of the Texas State School of Music, will conduct more than 400 musicians, including the Texas State Symphony, University Singers, area high school students and the Hill Country Youth Chorus. Shay Ishii, the artistic director of the Shay Ishii Dance Company and publicity coordinator for Texas State’s Department of Theatre and Dance, will choreograph 20 dancers who will perform on stage and among the audience during the concert.
“I worked with Dr. Babcock in 2009. We had eight vocalists from Texas State moving and singing onstage with the dancers,” Ishii said. “I think there will continue to be more collaborations. I know of multiple discussions for collaborative works next year.”
CORRECTION: Due to incorrect information provided by the organizers, the story incorrectly said the performance begins at at 8:30 p.m. It starts at 7:30 p.m.
