On Saturday, May 16, at 7 p.m., at St. Luke’s Lutheran Church in Cuyahoga Falls, the Cuyahoga Valley Community Chorus will present “Celebrate America 250” featuring worship and gospel singer Leslie Parker Barnes.
The concert is presented by Great Day Improvements, a home improvement company headquartered in Northeast Ohio. Cuyahoga Valley Choral Arts artistic director, Ted Shure, will conduct the concert with help from the group’s associate conductor, Colleen Coyle Miller, along with pianist, John Eley. Suggested donation at the door is $20.
The program, honoring America’s 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration Of Independence, will include music from iconic and diverse American composers such as Aaron Copland, Elaine Hagenberg, and Bob Dylan, among others; it will communicate messages of peace, unity and brotherhood, and present patriotic songs that honor the brave men and women of the United States Armed Forces and our incredible first responders, all while celebrating the vast and varied landscape of this country.
Guest soloist Barnes is a native of Akron. A graduate of Akron Public Schools, Barnes continued her education at Bowling Green State University and continued her education at the McCreary Center for Black Religious Studies. She earned a Master of Divinity degree from Ashland Theological Seminary and a Doctorate in Worship from the Robert Webber Institute for Worship Studies. Barnes has served as the Minister of Praise & Worship Arts at Arlington Church of God in Akron for more than 30 years.
“It is a joy and honor to welcome Dr. Barnes to our Chorus family,” Shure stated in a media release. “She will join the chorus as soloist in a fabulous arrangement of ‘Lift Every Voice and Sing’, otherwise known as the Black National Anthem. The text was written by poet, James Weldon Johnson in 1900 and his brother, J. Rosamond Johnson set it to music in 1905. She will also perform ‘Safety’, by Oscar Williams Jr., based on Psalm 27, which has profound meaning in today’s world. I will join Dr. Barnes at the piano in a special piece entitled, ‘My Tribute’ (To God be the Glory), by Andrae Crouch. I am thrilled and blessed by our collaboration with Dr. Barnes. This will be a concert to remember.”
Cuyahoga Valley Choral Arts welcomes Great Day Improvements as a the official sponsor of “Celebrate America 250”.
“At Great Day Improvements, everything we do starts with people and that’s why partnerships like this matter so much,” stated Liz Huldin, the company’s chief people officer. “We’re proud to support the Cuyahoga Valley Community Chorus and their mission of ‘bringing people together through music.’ As a hometown company, being part of ‘Celebrate America 250’ is an opportunity to deepen our connection with the community and celebrate what brings us together.”
St. Luke’s Lutheran Church is at 2121 Sixth Street in Cuyahoga Falls. Parking is available at St. Luke’s off of Sixth Street and additional parking will be available at Redeemer Lutheran off of Fifth Street. Both are between Broad Boulevard and Portage Trail.
Cuyahoga Valley Choral Arts will launch its new website prior to the May 16th concert. Once it goes live, visit www.cvchoral.org for details. For more information you can email the chorus at info@cvchoral.org and follow them on Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok @cvchoral. To hear the chorus online, visit and follow them on YouTube @cvchoral333.
This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Cuyahoga Valley Community Chorus honors America’s 250th anniversary
Reporting by Akron Beacon Journal / Akron Beacon Journal
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