TEXARKANA -- Two upcoming performances will spotlight local musical talent -- free of charge.
A Texarkana College student recital Thursday, Oct. 6, and an outdoor concert by the Texarkana Regional Chorale on Oct. 14 promise a variety of classical and popular selections for music lovers.
The recital will include 10 students, each playing a piece they have been polishing for about six weeks, said Marc-André Bougie, TC professor and TRC music director. All are taking applied lessons, "basically private instrument lessons," Bougie said, and public recitals twice a semester are a requirement of the class.
"The repertoire we cover is great classical repertoire: operatic repertoire for singers, classical instrumental repertoire for brass and woodwinds and string players," he said.
TRC's "Al Fresco" concert will continue the outdoor series the group began in 2017. With piano accompaniment by Mary Scott Smith, Bougie will conduct the chorale in 10 pieces chosen to reflect the theme "Music of the Night."
They will include Morten Lauridsen's "Sure on this Shining Night," "Can We Sing the Darkness to Light?" by Kyle Pederson, the world premiere of Robert Cohen's "The Joy of Simple Things" and of course, "The Music of the Night" from Andrew Lloyd Webber's musical "The Phantom of the Opera."
Both performances are open to the public and free, with donations accepted.
"We do what we do for the enjoyment of people, so we want people to come have a great time," Bougie said.
(Texarkana College's student recital will take place at 5 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 6, in the Stilwell Humanities Building Music Hall, 2500 N. Robison Road in Texarkana, Texas. Texarkana Regional Chorale's "Al Fresco: Music of the Night" concert is scheduled for 5:30 p.m. Friday, Oct. 14, at 1894 City Market, 105 Olive St. in Texarkana, Arkansas.)