*Marshall: SMSU Chorale -When We Sing Heart

In March of 2024 SMSU and the Marshall community lost an icon. Saara Myreene Rappana was a teacher, a poet of the finest order, a business owner, and a dear friend to many. To honor Saara and the enduring legacy that she left both at SMSU and in the Marshall community, the SMSU Chorale has commissioned celebrated St. Paul-based composer, Linda Kachelmeier, to compose a choral work based on Saara’s poetry. The result, entitled “When I Say Heart, I Mean,” is a powerful statement of hope, resilience, and growth in the face of profound adversity.

“When We Sing Heart” will feature the world premier of “When I Say Heart, I Mean,” along with several other works based on the poetry of outstanding poets, including works by Ralph Vaughan Williams, Lee Dengler, Samuel Barber, and Eric Whitacre. The program will also feature Gwyneth Walker’s “Acquaintance with Nature,” which sets texts by Henry David Thoreau. The SMSU Chorale will be joined by clarinetist, Dr. Michael Walsh.

This activity is made possible in part by the voters of Minnesota through a grant from the SW Minnesota Arts Council thanks to a legislative appropriation from the arts and cultural heritage fund.