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August 10, 2007
Purdue Varsity Glee Club to perform annual First Nighter concert
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - |
The concert, sponsored in part by the Purdue Student Union Board, will be at 7:30 p.m. in the Purdue Memorial Union ballrooms. It is free and open to the public. It will be the first performance of the year for the "new men" - 24 new student performers - who join the 38 returning vocalists in the all-male vocal ensemble.
"We don't ease slowly into the new semester, we burst into it full throttle with our first concert every year," said Brian Breed, director of Purdue Musical Organizations. "Our audiences are treated to surprise after surprise with every concert because we custom fit each performance."
The group spends a week in "Glee Club Camp" in northern Indiana prior to the show, where the new performers are orientated into the process of being a Varsity Glee Club member. The men concentrate on learning new songs and expanding their repertoire of classical to contemporary, gospel to show tunes.
"It's one week, with 100 percent concentration on the Glee Club," Breed said. "Singing is just a part of it; we work on the whole package. These young men are trained in everything from etiquette to mingling with guests after a performance. Once they join, they represent Purdue University as ambassadors of goodwill 24-7."
The Varsity Glee Club has daily rehearsals and performs more than 100 shows each year. The group has toured Canada, Mexico, Australia, New Zealand, Fiji, China, the United Kingdom and will tour South Africa in 2008. The group has been featured at many prestigious events, including five presidential inaugurations and the Rose Bowl. They also have worked with performers such as Skitch Henderson, Marvin Hamlisch and Garrison Keillor.
The Glee Club is one of a variety of performance opportunities within Purdue Musical Organizations. More than 200 students perform with PMO annually. Purdue has no school of music, so nearly every academic major is represented in the organization.
Writer: Christy Jones, (765) 494-1089, christyjones@purdue.edu
Sources: Brian Breed, (765) 494-3941, bdbreed@purdue.edu
Steve Schlenk, PMO assistant to the director, (765) 496-6091, sschlenk@purdue.edu
Purdue News Service: (765) 494-2096; purduenews@purdue.edu
PHOTO CAPTION:
Students from the Purdue Varsity Glee Club perform during last year's season. The Glee Club will perform its free First Nighter concert Aug. 24 to welcome back students for the fall semester. The concert begins at 7:30 p.m. in the Purdue Memorial Union North and South ballrooms. (Purdue Musical Organizations photo)
A publication-quality photo is available at https://www.purdue.edu/uns/images/+2007/PMO-opener.jpg
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