April 27, 2026

College of St. Scholastica Choirs: 2025–2026 Year in Review

April 27, 2026

This year began, as it always does, with auditions just after Labor Day. We welcomed a small but mighty group of new singers into our community who quickly made their mark with their positive energy, commitment, and musicianship.

This fall also marked a significant transition with the departure of Dr. Bret Amundson. We restructured our choral program, consolidating Concert Choir and Chamber Choir into a single ensemble and shifting my role to include directing Bella Voce. I was both excited and nervous to step into this new role, but Bella immediately welcomed me into their community.

In September, I traveled to Texas for what was to be the world premiere of Joby Talbot’s Piedra de Sol. While the premiere was ultimately canceled due to illness, the opportunity to spend time with Joby and connect in Austin was deeply meaningful. In January, I returned for the rescheduled premiere, which was extraordinary. Being present for the birth of this powerful new work was one of the highlights of my year.

Conspirare performing *Piedra de Sol*, photo credit Kenn Box

Our choirs were also on the move early in the semester, traveling to Minneapolis in October to collaborate with Giselle Wyers and participate in a multi-ensemble project alongside singers from Iowa State, Minnesota State University, Mankato, Lake Superior Youth Chorus, and St. Michael-Albertville High School. The experience of working across institutions and building community through music was invaluable, and getting to perform five new world premieres was incredible.

Combined Choirs at the Giselle Wyers Festival

The following weekend we celebrated Homecoming with our annual Prism Concert, and then we sang the National Anthem at the football game.

We took new choir photos—a windy day resulted in memorable photos for Bella (we did reschedule and got some good ones).

Our Justice Choir continued its important work, singing at the Fall Alworth Center for Peace and Justice event, and in November, we honored our veterans through music at the annual Veterans Day flag raising ceremony.

Justice Choir at the October 30th Alworth Peace and Justice Lecture

November brought a personal professional milestone: Borealis Chamber Artists performed at the American Choral Directors Association State Conference, reprising The Little Match Girl Passion with our dance collaborators, led by Kayla Schlitgen. I could not have been more proud of the ensemble!

Borealis Chamber Artists Performing at the ACDA State Conference, November 15, 2025

Later in November we welcomed Gene Peterson to campus. Gene is my former high school choir teacher, and it was so fun having him here to work with our conducting students and choirs! He always brings such joy and we loved having him with us for a few days!

December was, as always, a whirlwind in the best possible way. From the President’s Dinner to Advent Vespers, Lighting a Tradition, and O Holy Night, our singers were everywhere, sharing music across campus and the community. Ashley Peters and I also appeared on The Lift (WDIO) to promote the concerts.

We closed the semester with caroling around campus and our Messiah Singalong

The spring semester brought new energy and new opportunities. March was especially full. Bella Voce traveled on a mini-tour to the Iron Range and up the North Shore, sharing music with students and building community within the ensemble.

Emerald leading an activity at Grand Rapids High School

The annual Still I Rise concert took place on March 20, and brought together singers from the University of St. Thomas, Marshall, Stella Maris Academy, Bella Voce in a powerful and collaborative performance. A few days later, the Art Walk gave Bella a chance to perform in a more relaxed setting, while collaborating with our visual art colleagues.

In April, Concert Choir (and a few extra Bella singers) returned to Minneapolis for the Sing Democracy 250 signature concert at Orchestra Hall. We combined with MSU Moorehead, Honors Choirs of SE Minnesota, and the Choral Arts Ensemble Singers from Rochester, along with the Metropolitan Symphony Orchestra —it was an inspiring weekend. I was so proud of our students, who represented the College with excellence.

Bella sang for the Donor Body Memorial Service in April, which is a beautiful way to collaborate with our health professionals programs and honor the lives of those who donated their bodies to science.

We concluded the year with our spring concert, A Place for Us, celebrating 250 years since the signing of the Declaration of Independence. The concert was beautiful, and our singers moved many in the audience to tears. But what I am most proud of are the meaningful conversations we shared throughout the semester. It has been a challenging year on many levels, and yet these students continue to give me hope.

Sing Democracy 250 Signature Concert at Orchestra Hall, April 11, 2026

Hope is essential for progress. Our country’s founders set lofty goals—goals that have not yet been fully realized. Yet the beauty of those ideals is that they establish a trajectory of possibility. They function as a kind of north star, guiding us toward better versions of ourselves and a more just and equitable society. Over the past 250 years, we have stumbled, and we will undoubtedly continue to do so. But if we hold onto hope—and pair that hope with meaningful action—we move closer to realizing those ideals for all people.

I truly believe the work our choirs have done this year reflects that kind of positive change. Through music, through community, and through a shared commitment to something greater than ourselves, our students are sending ripples outward—into our campus, our community, our state, and beyond.

Looking back, this year was one of transition, growth, and connection. Through every rehearsal, performance, and shared experience, our singers continued to build something meaningful together—a community rooted in care, excellence, and the belief that what we do matters.

To all of our students: thank you. It is a privilege to make music with you!

Richard Carrick

April 28, 2025

A Year of Song, Community, and Purpose: Reflections on the CSS Choirs, 2024-2025

Richard Carrick

April 28, 2025

The CSS Choirs Performing at *O Holy Night,* December 2024

As this extraordinary academic year comes to a close, we celebrate not only the concerts performed and the milestones reached, but the community we built through daily choices to show up, work together, and lift each other higher.

Our students accomplished remarkable things this year — not just musically, but personally and collectively, living out the Benedictine Values that guide us at The College of St. Scholastica: Community, Respect, Love of Learning, Hospitality, and Stewardship.

Prism and Homecoming

We began our year with a our annual Prism Concert, celebrating all of the music ensembles at the College of St. Scholastica. The energy was high as we were excited about the possibilities of our academic year, which was just getting underway. Immediately after, the choir sang the National Anthem at the Homecoming football game, bringing spirit and connection to our wider campus community.

Vivaldi’s Gloria

In October, over 150 high school singers and instrumentalists from Duluth East and Denfeld High joined our CSS Choirs and Orchestra to perform Vivaldi’s Gloria, a work rooted in the vibrant history of young women at the Ospedale della Pietà in Venice, where Vivaldi once taught and composed. This project reflected not only our commitment to community and hospitality — welcoming and connecting with the next generation of musicians — but also our love of learning, as we explored the historical significance of this powerful music.

O Holy Night

Our annual O Holy Night concerts were some of the finest in recent memory, selling out both nights and running with exceptional smoothness. These performances demonstrate how collective dedication and stewardship of the CSS Choir legacy leads to results that serve and inspire our broader community.

Community Building: Messiah Singalong, Bring the Sing, Honor Choir, Still I Rise, and Visiting Ensembles

In December, we partnered with Borealis Chamber Artists for a community Messiah Singalong, a tradition going back more than 40 years at CSS, inviting all to raise their voices together in celebration of Handel’s masterwork — another clear reflection of our Benedictine values of community and hospitality.

We welcomed visiting choirs from Cromwell, Spring Lake Park, Superior, Proctor, Minneapolis Southwest, Two Rivers, Roseau, Barron Area Schools, Denfeld, East, and Drake University, and Oak Land Middle School, among many other individual visits by students to our campus. Each exchange reflected the power of hospitality and the shared joy of community music-making.

In March, we hosted our annual Bring the Sing in collaboration with Minnesota Public Radio, which was coupled with our second annual CSS Honor Choir, which saw more than 70 high school singers gathered on our campus for a day of connection and music, demonstrating the vibrant community we are building and our open-hearted hospitality toward future generations of singers.

April brought more collaboration where Bella Voce delivered a powerful performance with their Still I Rise program. CSS hosted St. Micheal Albertville High School and the University of St. Thomas, showcasing how choral music can serve as a catalyst for activism, hope, and social justice.

Taking the Stage: Collaborations with the DSSO, Cantus, Composers, and Augsburg University

This year was a remarkable year for collaborations. Concert Choir took on the challenge of singing Brahms’ Nänie and Manuel del Aguila’s Barelas Choral Suite, in collaboration with the Duluth Superior Symphony Orchestra, pushing musical boundaries and rising to the occasion with excellence.

Dress rehearsal with the DSSO, April 2025

Our Chamber Choir had the privilege of performing on the same program as Cantus, one of the nation’s premier vocal ensembles, and engaging with hundreds of tenor-bass high school singers from across rural Minnesota.

Working directly with composers Charlotte Botha and Shruthi Rajasekar, our students had the rare opportunity to explore new music firsthand — deepening their inquiry skills, solving complex musical challenges, and creating powerful performances.

We closed our year with Songs of the Earth, a concert celebrating music from over ten languages and cultures — a true embodiment of the value of hospitality and our mission to celebrate global diversity through shared artistry.

Pilgrims of Hope: Italy 2025

One of the defining moments of our year was our nine-day tour of Italy. We sang in historic sacred spaces, from Florence to Assisi, Rome, and Montecassino, including the Basilica of St. Paul Outside the Walls, Chiesa di Sant’Anselmo all’Aventino, the crypt at Montecassino where Saints Benedict and Scholastica are buried, and the Sacro Speco cave at Subiaco. Students connected deeply to our Benedictine heritage — standing, singing, and praying in the spaces that shaped the heart of our College.The echoes of those performances and the relationships made will stay with us for a lifetime.

Closing Thoughts

Throughout the year, our students lived out the Benedictine Values not through grand gestures, but through daily choices: showing up, learning deeply, serving one another, and lifting their voices together.

They demonstrated that leadership often looks like quiet service.
They showed that beauty created together is stronger than anything created alone.
They proved that the ripples of hope and connection we send into the world matter.

The result of these small choices were grand experiences. In a time marked by division, these choir students are a living example that through community, respect, stewardship, hospitality, and love of learning, we can build something beautiful.

It has been an extraordinary year.

Richard Carrick

March 31, 2025

Article: Sir James MacMillan Brings Sacred Music to Minnesota in Two-Week Festival

Richard Carrick

March 31, 2025

Sir James MacMillan

Minnesota is poised for a remarkable musical celebration as acclaimed Scottish composer Sir James MacMillan visits for an extensive two-week residency featuring performances with the Minnesota Orchestra and VocalEssence. The visit, which runs from March 28 to April 6, represents a significant cultural event for the state's vibrant choral community.

The seeds for this musical residency were planted four years ago when Philip Brunelle, VocalEssence artistic director and founder, first encountered MacMillan at a lecture in Gloucester, England.

"When I first met Sir James I heard him give a lecture, and it was so riveting. He was so deep in what he was talking about in terms of music and its role in the world," Brunelle explained during a recent interview. "And I went up to him after and said, okay, so now when is it you're coming to Minneapolis?"

What began as an aspiration has evolved into a comprehensive musical experience spanning orchestral performances, sacred choral works, educational opportunities, and a world premiere.

MacMillan's visit kicks off with performances at Orchestra Hall on March 28 and 29, where he will conduct the Minnesota Orchestra in a program featuring two of his own works — "Woman of the Apocalypse" and "Kiss on Wood" with cellist Sonia Mantell — alongside pieces by Wagner, Rachmaninoff, and Rimsky-Korsakov.

On April 4 at the Cathedral of Saint Paul, seven Twin Cities church choirs will present "Voices for a Cathedral," a free concert of MacMillan's sacred music. Each choir will perform one of his anthems, culminating in all 250 voices joining together for a world premiere composition conducted by MacMillan.

The festival concludes April 6 at the Ordway Concert Hall with "Sacred Voices," featuring two major MacMillan works — "Seven Last Words from the Cross" and "The Sun Danced" — performed by the VocalEssence Chorus and Ensemble Singers together with the University of Minnesota's University Singers and a 45-piece orchestra.

"It's a true privilege to have an internationally-known composer of his stature here for a healthy stretch of time and events, allowing our 'choral country' citizens to connect to the man and his music," said Brunelle.

Beyond performances, MacMillan's visit emphasizes education and community engagement. Throughout the week of March 31-April 4, he will lead workshops with high school students across the Twin Cities metro, encouraging improvisation skills—an approach he regularly fosters in Scotland. Graduate students at the University of Minnesota will benefit from masterclasses in composition and conducting, while MacMillan will also present to the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute on April 3.

"When I have invited guest composers from around the world, my goal has been that they are composers that I want to show in a broader way, not just a single choral concert," Brunelle noted. "And in the case of Sir James, he has a very big interest in young people. So I knew that I wanted to make sure that was part of our week with him."

The April 6 concert will feature South African soprano Goitsemang Lehobye, whom Brunelle previously worked with in Cape Town. Now completing her doctorate at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, Lehobye brings the vocal power necessary for the demanding orchestral setting.

"You need to have a soprano with not only a beautiful voice, but a big voice that can carry over the orchestra," Brunelle explained. "And she's that kind of person."

Excitement for MacMillan's visit continues to build among Minnesota's choral community. Erik Finley, vice president of artistic planning for the Minnesota Orchestra, noted, "His compositions are brilliantly crafted and emotionally vivid, and these two weeks of performances are going to be memorable."

MacMillan is widely recognized as the leading contemporary composer for voices and orchestra in the United Kingdom. His work draws inspiration from his Scottish Catholic faith and sacred music traditions, with his anthem "Who Shall Separate Us?" having been commissioned for Queen Elizabeth II's funeral.

"He's a lovely, wonderful man," Brunelle shared. "The kind of person you want to make music with."