NEWS RELEASE

Contact: David West (west@nsula.edu )
News Bureau
Northwestern State University
Natchitoches, LA 71497
(318) 357-6466

10/18/2006

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

NATCHITOCHES -D'Nissa Adams knows she has to be at her best each day as a member of the Northwestern State University Chamber Choir. Adams, a junior music performance major from Amarillo, Texas, will perform with the Chamber Choir Monday, Oct. 23 at 7:30 p.m. in Magale Recital Hall. Admission is free and open to the public.

Adams, a soprano, will solo on a section of Prayers from the Ark.

"It is a very interesting work," said Adams. "The music really brings out the text. It fits well with the words. The song is very pretty, graceful and sweet."

Adams cannot remember a time in her life when she wasn't around music, either listening to it or singing.

"When I was a little girl, my grandpa always sang to me and my mother was a singer," she said. "In elementary school, I always sang solos. I love singing. I am in the practice room almost every day."

That constant practice is important for a member of a highly auditioned choral group that includes the best singers at the University. The Chamber Choir has performed at Carnegie Hall and throughout Louisiana including performances with the Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra and the Shreveport Symphony Orchestra.

"You have to bring your 'A' game to rehearsal each time," said Adams. "I have to be prepared. If someone isn't prepared, everyone knows it."

Adams had not considered attending Northwestern until learning about the university at a college fair.

"Northwestern had a booth and (Head of the School of Creative and Performing Arts) Mr. (Bill) Brent and (then Assistant Director of Bands) Jeff Matthews were at a booth. They both made a good impression on my parents, who told me to come and talk with them. I got a CD, and liked what I found out about Northwestern," she said. "The size of Northwestern is just right for me. I didn't want to go to a place that was too large or too small."

Adams, a member of Sigma Alpha Iota Music Fraternity, said the individual attention students receive from faculty is one of the university's strong points.

"The faculty here is very good. They are interested in each person and how they are progressing," said Adams. "If you were thrown in with a bunch of people and no one was providing that individual attention, the ensemble would not continue to improve.

Adams was in the Spirit of Northwestern Marching Band for three semesters, playing percussion in addition to singing in the Chamber Choir.

"That experience helps me because it gave me a good sense of rhythm that many singers don't have," said Adams.

Monday's program will include two madrigals, Rest Sweet Nymphs by Francis Pilkington and Il est bel et bon, Domine ad Adjuvandum Me Festival by G.B. Martini, Prayers from The Ark by Ivor Davies and Na Nie by Brahms. They will also perform Dear Companion, Wade in the Water arranged by Moses Hogan and Home on The Range arranged by conductor Dr. Burt Allen and Stephen Foster's Camptown Races arranged by John Halloran.

Adams said the choir enjoys performing a variety of music.

"I enjoy every type of music. I like to listen to different types and explore different genres," she said. "In the Chamber Choir we perform everything from Gregorian chants to newer contemporary works. That keeps things interesting because we hardly ever do the same work twice."

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