American Boychoir Makes Stop

The Cathedral and the Arts series will open its season Saturday with a concert by the American Boychoir conducted by James Litton.

Saturday’s program, sponsored by the Cathedral and the Arts Association and the Spokane Area Children’s Chorus, will also include segments performed by an ensemble from the Children’s Chorus and by the Spokane All-City Honor Choir. The concert finale will combine all three groups.

The program will include classics from the boy choir literature by Victoria, Bach, Mozart and Mendelssohn along with South African folk songs and modern classics by composers such as Zoltan Kodaly and Oscar Peterson.

The American Boychoir is a 48-member ensemble drawn from the students of the American Boychoir School in Princeton, N.J. The school, now in its 47th year, enrolls more than 80 students from across the United States and Canada.

The group has appeared in concert in this country and in Europe, has performed with the New York Philharmonic and the Philadelphia Orchestra, appeared in films, on television and radio, and records on the Angel label. The choir also has made recordings with opera divas Kathleen Battle and Jessye Norman.

The American Boychoir’s Spokane appearance is a part of its first North American tour.

The Spokane Area Children’s Chorus, conducted by Tamara Schupman, toured southern and central Europe last summer. The group is preparing for a tour of Great Britain next summer. The 36 members of the Spokane All-City Honor Choir have been selected from 15 Spokane-area elementary and middle schools.

, DataTimes MEMO: This sidebar appeared with the story: CONCERT The American Boychoir will perform at 7:30 p.m. Saturday at St. John’s Cathedral, 127 E. 12th. Tickets: $12 general admission, $10 students and seniors, and $6 for children under 12, available at G&B Select-a-Seat outlets or call (800) 325-SEAT.