On Monday, March, 10 Topeka Festival Singers celebrated the majesty and third concert at the senior festival’s 40th anniversary season of choral excellence inside White Concert Hall at 7:30 p.m. Around 500 spectators were present at the concert.
The concert was directed by Brett Robison, who has been the artistic director for the Topeka Festival Singers since 2022. Brett has conducted choirs and orchestras of all ages and ability levels for the past 25 years. He is the director of the Friends of Chamber Music in Kansas City and previously the executive director for the Topeka Symphony Orchestra.
The concert started with a speech from Grace Morrison, president of the Topeka Festival Singers, highlighting the involvement of nearly 50 area choir members and featuring students from various schools, including Washburn University and Topeka Collegiate School.
The Topeka Festival Singers was founded in 1984 by music director Myles Criss, organist and choirmaster at Grace Episcopal Cathedral, and accompanist Richard Gayhart, organist at First Presbyterian Church in Topeka. From an initial group of 16, the Singers have grown over the years and gained a reputation for high-quality performances that have taken them around the northeast Kansas area and on two European tours.
Robison discussed the group’s 40th season, shared his journey with the group and mentioned the concert and selection of various pieces.
“I am the fourth conductor of the group and usually it’s about what you see on stage, about 40 singers,” Robison said. “But tonight we are joined by community members. This is my third year as the permanent director. This was a musical journey of tracing how church choral music has developed through the centuries. So it was a very fast journey but it was a journey of how far music has come and what kinds of influences composers today have. I tried to find the pieces that would educate and entertain.”
Jayna Mcfarland, soprano of topeka festival singers, discussed her experiences with the group and highlighted the impact of COVID-19.
“Well, I’ve been singing my whole life, but when I sing with the Festival Singers, I work on my technique,” Mcfarland said. “I get to sing with other people who take music very seriously, so I’ve become a more skilled musician, and I also get to have a lot of fun because I’m making music.
“The mission of the group is to foster a harmonious community by creating high-quality choral music while embracing diversity and inclusion. We inspire audiences, create a legacy of excellence and share delight through the transformative power and joy of choral artistry.”
Sydney Clark, alto of Topeka Festival Singers, discussed her experiences with the group. She highlighted the joy and community of being a member and recalled her first year’s in the group.
“I’ve been a member since 2019, so about five years,” Clark said. “In my first year, I was really nervous because everybody’s super talented. I remember we had Dr. Paul Tucker, who was our conductor at the time, and he was really great. And COVID hit in 2020 so we had to do everything virtually. And then I remember the first concert that we had coming back from COVID was really powerful, like singing in front of a live audience again after all that craziness happened. There’s been a lot of different memories over the past several years.”
Jason Inson, musician, shared his relationship with the group and the performance.
“I’ve been playing with them since about probably 2010,” Inson said. “And one of the members of the group at the time was a music director of mine, so she asked me to play. It’s always a good time hearing a variety of different songs that they play, different genres and music that they do, and it’s just a good time.”
The next concert is on May 12, 2025, in White Concert Hall at 7:30 p.m.
Edited by Morgan Albrecht and Jeremy Ford.
