To the accompaniment of a drenching March rainfall, associate conductor Jennifer Sacher Wiley gracefully took the stage in Carnegie Hall's Isaac Stern Auditorium, one of the nation's most recognized classical music venues. As she lowered her baton, four older women sitting in a tier box overlooking the stage instinctively, proudly, rose from their seats to sing the alma mater. In a moment, the packed house - 2,800 strong - was on its feet in recognition of the music that has been the rallying call for generations of Susquehanna students.

The richness of 200 choral voices fell over the audience like a wave crashing on the sand. A few moments later, principal conductor Cyril Stretansky strode briskly to the podium. A low rumble from the stage intensified as the performers ' students, faculty, staff and alumni of Susquehanna University - tapped their feet on the floor in a traditional welcome for a leader who has inspired the musical ambitions of innumerable students through the years.

Also Read: Farewell to the Maestro Home is Where the Music Is Making Time for Music From Boots and Barn Jackets to Black Gowns and Broaches The Faculty: Going the Distance for Their Students

For the next two hours, the Susquehanna University Masterworks Chorus and Orchestra enchanted the house with an enthusiastic and compelling performance of choral and orchestral pieces, one composed by a faculty member for the evening, another arranged by an alumnus. An employee of Carnegie Hall, accustomed to listening to some of the world's top musicians, later remarked that the SU chorus of amateur and professional voices was among the best she had heard.

***

When the seeds of the March 7 performance were first planted one and a half years earlier, the notion of the Susquehanna chorus and orchestra appearing in the august and venerable Carnegie Hall seemed far-fetched. Who would pay for the event? Would the hall be available? Would anyone come, and if so, how would they get there?

The driver for the event was the university's sesquicentennial. In the winter of '06-'07, those responsible for planning the 150th anniversary of Susquehanna were already thinking about a signature event to kick off a year-long celebration. In the past, major events were often accompanied by a combined performance of the chorus and choir - a so-called Masterworks concert. When the new music building was dedicated, the Masterworks Chorus was asked to perform. Would it be appropriate to bring them to a more prominent venue off campus and in the process give them the recognition they deserved?

Maestro Cyril Stretansky takes the stage to the low rumble of performers tapping their feet on the stage in a traditional welcome.

At the incipient stages of these discussions, it was learned that Stretansky, the eminence grise of the music faculty, would be retiring in 2008 after 35 years of service to the university. The convergence of the sesquicentennial, Stretansky's retirement and the willingness of an anonymous donor to support a prominent event suggested the timing of a performance and helped cement the format as well. Would it not be poignant to bring together 35 years of alumni to perform under Stretansky's baton?

With the calendar bringing more urgency to the conversations, the names of other venues were bandied about, including the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts in Philadelphia and the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C. But it was judged that no place had the gravitas of Carnegie Hall. "We kept circling back to Carnegie Hall as the gold standard," says Ron Cohen, vice president of university relations.

Valerie Martin, dean of the School of Arts, Humanities and Communications, recalls sitting at a meeting in April 2007 with a number of key decision makers. Someone gave the signal to call. "I remember getting up and going to a phone to check Carnegie Hall's availability," Martin says. "Sure enough, everything was booked, but two dates had no deposits. One was March 7." Martin grabbed the date and put down the $15,000 deposit needed to secure it. And the rest, as they say, is history. "Just as the branches of the Susquehanna River come together near our birthplace in Selinsgrove, a confluence of our past, present and future was revealed at Carnegie Hall on March 7, joining hearts and voices among many generations in celebration of where we started, where we have been and where we will go," says Susquehanna University President L. Jay Lemons.

Story continues. Click here.
Page 1 | Page 2 | Page 3 | Page 4 | Page 5