Bradley Community Chorus to perform April 13

Peoria, Illinois . . . March 3, 2003 . . . The Bradley Community Chorus will present Gabriel Faure's Requiem and Benjamin Britten's Rejoice in the Lamb on Sunday, April 13, at 3 p.m. at Salem Lutheran Church, 3901 N. War Memorial Drive in Peoria.

The chorus, directed by John Jost, will be accompanied by members of the Peoria Symphony and the Bradley Chamber Orchestra, with organist Sherry Seckler. Soloists in the Faurvre work will be baritone Steve Williams of Washington and soprano Shirley Salazar of Peoria.

Faure began his Requiem in 1887 and finished it in 1893. It is a remarkably peaceful work, using the traditional Catholic liturgy of the Mass for the Dead to stress pardon and hope rather than divine retribution. Britten based his 1943 work Rejoice in the Lamb on a poem of Christopher Smart, an 18th century poet who was deeply devout but unstable of mind. The poem was written while Smart was in an insane asylum, and makes fantastic references to animals, letters of the alphabet, and the sounds of musical instruments, calling on all of them to praise God together.

The concert is being held at Salem Lutheran Church rather than at Dingeldine Music Center to take advantage of the church's excellent, recently renovated organ. Admission is $5 for adults and free for students. For more information, call 677-2600.