Mosaic – the word is defined in many ways as pertaining to something made from many diverse elements, and the name is perfect for the Mosaic Concert, taking place at Washburn a second time this year.

What is the Mosaic Concert all about? The best way to describe it would be as a collage of many different musical groups, all brought together in one place for one performance. There are no breaks between each piece of music, only a constant flow of sound. As soon as one piece ends, another begins. All the singers and musicians are spread throughout the auditorium in different positions, surrounding the audience with music.

“It’s sort of like short attention span theater,” said Mark Norman, director of bands. “Each piece is about five minutes – it would start off with the wind ensemble on stage, then the women’s choir in the balcony and so on. They go one right after the other…you end up getting about 20 pieces of music in an hour and 15 minutes.”

Norman said that while the concert is fast-paced, it is also easy to enjoy due to the eclectic range of music presented. Everything from band and orchestra to piano solos, jazz combos and choir voices can be expected at this year’s performance, with many major composers such as Tchaikovsky and Mendelssohn represented.

The entire music department gets involved in the concert, professors included. Once the pieces have been decided, the performers and groups practice separately. There is one group rehearsal that takes place, Norman said, in which they work out lighting, and positioning.

“It can be difficult sometimes because there are students who are performing in more than one group and need to get from one place to another,” said Norman.

The group rehearsal lasts a few hours.

Jaron Marcus, a junior piano performance major, performed in the concert the first year it took place at Washburn and will also be performing this year as part of the choir.

“Getting ready has been a lot of hard work,” said Marcus. “Dr. Kellam is always good at preparing his students, it’s always fun to be a part of his choir.”

Marcus commented that while performing in the last concert was something he had fun with, he also enjoyed being able to watch the majority of it and appreciate the music.

“I think the piece I liked the most last year was the brass piece by Mr. Norman,” said Marcus. “I’d love to see some teachers perform again this year as well.”