About the Choir
Eckerd College Concert Choir
The Eckerd Concert choir is open to vocal amateurs as well as the music major and performs on and off campus and tours each spring. One of the goals of the choir is to provide each singer a complete musical experience within the framework of a liberal arts education. The choir is well known in the Tampa Bay Area for its annual Madrigal Dinners, A Victorian style celebration that ushers in the holiday season. The dinners celebrated their 19 presentation in 2006. In 2004 the choirs inaugurated an annual “Messiah” Sing-A-Long that is quickly becoming another area tradition. The choir often joins with other local choral organizations for the performance of large choral works with professional soloists and orchestra. In the spring of 2003, the choir made its first international tour of England with performances in Oxford, York, Canterbury and London. The choir has toured the east coast several times with performances in The Washington National Cathedral and The Cathedral Church of St. John the Devine. In 2005, the choir toured Italy with performances in Rome, Venice and Florence. March 14-25, 2007 the choirs will be touring The People’s Republic of China and in 2008 will make their debut in Carnegie Hall, New York City.
The Eckerd Ringers
Formed in 1990, The Eckerd Ringers is an ensemble of twelve ringers. Membership is open to all students. The Eckerd Ringers play five octaves of Schulmerich handbells and five octaves of Suzuki handchimes. The Eckerd Ringers play a wide variety of music ranging from arrangements of familiar hymn tunes and other well know works to original compositions written especially for bells and chimes. The Eckerd Ringers appear in concert with the Concert Choir throughout the academic year. They also participated in the tours of England and Italy, performed in the Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine and will be a major part of the 2007 Tour of The People’s Republic of China and the 2008 New York tour.
View the full list of Concert Choir and Eckerd Ringers
Dr. Marion Smith, Director
Dr. Marion Smith is a professor of music and director of choral music at Eckerd College. He teaches courses in music history, theory, and interdisciplinary courses in the general education curriculum. Dr. Smith received his undergraduate degree at Xavier University of Louisiana in New Orleans, a Master of Arts from Washington State University, and a Ph.D. from Washington University in St. Louis. He has done further study at Westminster Choir College, and the New England Conservatory. In the summer of 2005, he was a participant in the Seventh Varna International Conductors Workshop. And has been invited back to participate in the Ninth Conductors Workshop in June 2007. In addition to his duties at Eckerd College, Dr. Smith serves as director of Music Ministries at First United Methodist Church in St. Petersburg, Florida.