A MUSICAL FEAST

On the final note of Tuesday night's performance of "Carmina Burana," the near-capacity audience in Academic Auditorium at Southeast Missouri State University rose as one to thank the 225 singers and instrumentalists and conductor Dr. John Egbert for such soul-stirring music.

They had been engulfed by talent, beginning with the startling choruses and mesmerizing rhythms of Carl Orff's masterwork. Soaring cathedrals and medieval bonfires on the terraces were within imagination.

The Choral Union composed of both community and university singers combined with the University Choir and University Orchestra to forge a powerful sound.

Soloists Jonathan Stewart, Dr. Christopher Goeke and Cary Nall provided quieter, lovely interludes.

Everyone deserves praise for attempting a work of such magnitude, difficulty and majesty. To have brought it off so beautifully is another testament to the artistry that graces our community.