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2022-23 Season

Welcome to the schedule for the 2022-23 season of the Karcher Concerts Series! An exciting year of music lies ahead as we welcome many different performers to the beautifully acoustic space of Saint Wendelin Catholic Church. Information on each of the concerts or recitals can be found below. As concerts get closer, more details will be added, especially as to some of the repertoire to be performed.

 

View photos from last year's concerts: Click Here!

 

Saturday, October 22, 2022 at 8:00: Bowling Green State University Men's Chorus

Widely reputed as “America’s Finest Singing Machine,” the Bowling Green State University Men’s Chorus is an auditioned large ensemble open to all tenor and bass singers on campus. The ensemble encompasses students from across all majors, representing all seven colleges at the University with over half of the members being non-music majors. The chorus functions both as a student organization and as a course offered through the College of Musical Arts, therefore deriving an atmosphere of brotherly camaraderie and exemplary musicianship. This year’s fall tour program includes a variety of repertoire, with classic selections by Franz Schubert and Pablo Casals, new compositions by Jocelyn Hagen and Joan Szymko, music by John Legend and Common from the motion picture, “Selma”, traditional songs of the BGSU Men’s Chorus, and more.


Sunday, November 13, 2022 at 3:00: Heidelberg Concert Choir & Chamber Singers

Our second concert will feature the Heidelberg University Concert Choir and Chamber Singers on Sunday, November 13 at 3:00 PM. Aiden Steinmetz, one of our cantors, is a member of the Concert Choir!

The Concert Choir is the premiere mixed choral ensemble of Heidelberg University’s School of Music. Annually, the choir masters an eclectic repertoire of choral literature representing major choral genres, historical eras, and cultural traditions. Highlights of the year include the choir’s collaboration with the University-Community Chorus and Orchestra each December in performances of Handel’s Messiah and other traditional holiday favorites and the annual spring tour. The choir is open by audition to all Heidelberg University students, regardless of major. The Chamber Singers is a small ensemble consisting of singers selected from The Concert Choir that specializes in performances of music from the Renaissance, Baroque, Romantic, and contemporary eras.


Sunday, January 8, 2023 at 4:00: Lima Symphony Brass Quintet

Christmas isn't complete without a brass quintet! Close out the Christmas season on the solemnity of Epiphany with brass players from the Lima Symphony Orchestra.

We welcome:
Jake Ciulla, first trumpet
Paul Hoverman, second trumpet
Adam Julian, horn
Dale Laukhuf, trombone
Tim Olt, tuba

There may also be a piece or two combined with our magnificent Holtkamp pipe organ!


Sunday, March 5, 2023 at 3:00: Erica Gabel, mezzo-soprano

At our fifth concert, we welcome home a daughter of the parish, Erica Gabel! Erica graduated from Ohio Northern University in 2017 with a BA in Theatre and a minor in Arts Administration. Upon graduation, Erica spent the summer and fall performing with the Peanuts Gang at Cedar Point. In February of 2018, she accepted an internship at Writers Theatre in Glencoe, Illinois, which brought her to Chicago. She has remained there since then, taking classes at Acting Studio Chicago and working on short films and theatre productions. She is currently working on a production of the Greek tragedy, Antigone, with Playtime Theatre Company. Her dream is to work as a professional actor throughout Chicago and Los Angeles; but really, her biggest dream is to be cast in National Treasure 3!

Erica is a 2013 graduate of St. Wendelin Catholic School and a two-time recipient of the Karcher Music Scholarship. She will perform a concert of songs from popular musicals! You definitely want to come hear her sing and welcome her "home"!


Sunday, April 23, 2023 at 4:00: Fostoria Handbell Choirs - Handbell-a-palooza!

The handbell choirs of Saint Wendelin and Hope Lutheran will come together to ring out songs of joy! Each bell choir will play a few pieces of their own and at the end, they create a "Handbell-a-palooza" with all three choirs combining together to close out the concert!

You won't want to miss this wonderful concert where we bring together multiple churches in our beloved Fostoria! 


Thursday, May 18, 2023 at 7:00: Angela Massey, flute, and Caroline Owen, piano

Our final concert of the 2022-23 season is a flute and piano duo: Angela Massey and Caroline Owen.

As a soloist, has been a featured guest artist with the Tryon Concert Association, Kosciuszko Foundation in New York City, River Center for the Performing Arts, and the National Flute Association. Outside of the United States, she has performed in England, France, Germany, Italy, Romania, and Switzerland. She serves as Artistic Director and founder of the Astralis Chamber Ensemble arranging and performing numerous recitals each year. She received degrees in flute performance from Carnegie Mellon University, University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music, and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

A native of Atlanta, GA, pianist Caroline Owen has performed in venues across the U.S. and in Austria, 

Italy, and the Czech Republic. She was the winner of the 2019 Florida MTNA Young Artist Competition and a semifinalist in the 14th International Mozart Competition and 2016 International Keyboard Odyssiad. She also won the 2018 Pro-Mozart Society of Atlanta Competition, from which she received a scholarship to study at the Mozarteum International Summer Academy under Dominique Merlet and Christopher Hinterhuber. Owen has participated and performed at festivals including Pianofest in the Hamptons, PianoTexas, Atlantic Music Festival, and the Prague Piano Festival. She has worked with distinguished artists and teachers such as Richard Goode, Yoheved Kaplinsky, Pascal Rogé, and Boris Slutsky, among others. Owen is also committed to promoting new music, most recently performing at the 2022 FSU Festival of New Music and premiering Donald Yu’s Piano Concerto No. 1 with the Orlando Contemporary Chamber Orchestra in 2021. Her background in dance has also fostered unique multidisciplinary collaborations with composer Badie Khaleghian. Owen recently received her Doctorate of Music degree in piano performance from Florida State University.