The Oxford Civic Chorus (OCC) — a local staple to the arts community since 1998 — has made a strong resurgence since the COVID-19 pandemic and hopes to continue its growth this upcoming semester. OCC puts on concerts and fosters community between Lafayette County locals.
Debra Atkinson, artistic director for the chorus and an adjunct instructor in music at the University of Mississippi, spoke of the group’s openness to membership.
“We don’t have auditions as a personal preference,” Atkinson said. “We have had auditions in the past, before I was the director, but they were basic things like, ‘Can you match pitch?’ I feel like the auditions turn people off. I have found that if someone comes and checks us out and feels like it’s above their head, they will self-eliminate. And we have had very little trouble with people not being able to cut the mustard, so it makes them feel more at ease.”
Atkinson sees the lack of an audition as a worthwhile method to make the chorus as open and welcoming as possible. They attribute the success of the organization to its ability to meet new members where they are skill-wise.
“If you have ever sung in a church choir or a high school choir, or if you were in community college choir or even have no experience, we would love for you to come and join us,” Atkinson said. “It is a very welcoming place. The older, more experienced crowd loves seeing fresh faces too.”
Amelia Samples, a sophomore music major, is in her second year with the chorus and values the community it provides.
“The environment of the group is exciting,” Samples, who is also on the social media team for OCC, said. “As it is a group of people gathering to celebrate and create art, the environment is a positive and engaging experience. Many people in OCC will always greet you with a smiling face and are elated that you are there. Specifically for students, it’s a very warm environment because you are so appreciated in the group.”
Along with a positive environment, OCC has also provided Samples with opportunities to grow in her desired career path.
“I decided to join (OCC) to boost experience for my future career and to engage more with the Oxford-Lafayette community,” Samples said.
As for the organization’s plans for this semester, Stephen Woodbridge, the publicity chair for the chorus, expressed excitement about the new Conducting Fellows Program, established after the chorus received a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts and the Mississippi Arts Commission. The program gives guest conductors the opportunity to direct a movement of a song in the chorus’s concert.
“(The Conducting Fellows Program is) not a big recruiting effort or anything,” Woodridge said. “But it is a way to create a small pipeline of people who have had actual experience. If you follow church music, a lot of churches are moving away from choirs. So there’s less opportunities for community for musicians, you know. So it’s a way to bring in new talent and give something back to the community.”
In addition to the Conducting Fellows Program, the chorus is also looking ahead to their spring concert with the Jackson Choral Society. First, the two choirs will have a show in Oxford at the David H. Nutt Auditorium on May 2 before performing in Jackson, Miss., the next day.
Atkinson spoke about the process and vision behind the upcoming concert.
“First, I listen to a lot of music,” Atkinson said. “There is a work we’re basing our spring concert around. It’s called ‘Creation’ and it’s by a young composer named Dan Forrest. I think about what would go with ‘Creation.’ John Rutter had a work called ‘The Gift of Life.’ Forrest’s (work) is in Latin, but the (seven) movements by Rutter are all in English.”
The concert is called “In The Beginning … Songs of Creation.” The chorus meets at the Oxford-University United Methodist Church from 6:30 – 8:30 p.m. every Monday.
“All are invited to come sing with us,” Atkinson said.
Editor’s note: The Daily Mississippian’s Assistant Arts & Culture Editor Jessica Johnson is a member of the Oxford Civic Chorus.
