(June 26, 2019) KANSAS CITY, MO – The Avila University choir will perform on July 4 in Normandy, France in commemoration of the 75th anniversary of the D-Day landings, the sole Kansas City-area ensemble to participate.
The 30-person Avila University Singers choral group will perform as part of the Paris Choral Festival, which will be highlighted by a wreath-laying ceremony at the American Cemetery, site of the Normandy Invasion. The University Singers have also been selected for a solo performance at a private wreath laying ceremony near Omaha Beach.
“We are honored to be selected to perform in this 75th anniversary remembrance of the Normandy Invasion knowing that with each passing year we lose veterans,” said Amity Bryson, Director of Choral Activities. “Our students have trained to perform, continually striving for excellence, in an effort to honor these veterans. We are humbled to represent Avila and Kansas City at this significant celebration of the sacrifices made by so many to ensure the freedoms we enjoy today.”
Following the performance at Normandy, the choir will then participate in the finale performance in Paris on July 8 with other groups from around the world. Led by artistic director Gary R. Schwartzhoff, the festival will feature works by Dan Forrest, Faure and others.
Additionally, the choir has been specially invited to perform in Lyon and Le Puy-en-Velay, France, the home cities of Avila’s founders, the Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet. This is the latest tour for the Avila choir, following a performance tour in Rome in 2016 and a concert at Carnegie Hall in New York in 2005.
For more information, tour itinerary, photography and video, please click here.
Avila University, a Catholic University founded and inspired by the Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet, provides undergraduate and graduate education in the liberal arts and professional studies, preparing lifelong learners who make meaningful contributions to the global community.