Revel in an evening of choral music entitled An American Tapestry with renowned guest conductors André Thomas and Anton Armstrong featuring the Masterwork Festival Chorus and National Festival Chorus this April at Carnegie Hall! 

Written in five moment and a true testament to his strength and skill as a composer, Andre Thomas' gospel-style Mass: A Celebration of Love and Joy combines the power of love and joy with the beauty and sophistication of top-tier choral music. A work not to be missed conducted by the composer himself, André Thomas.

André J. Thomas is the recently retired Owen F. Sellers Professor of Music, and Director of Choral Activities and Professor of Choral Music Education at Florida State University, and previous faculty member at the University of Texas, Austin. He is in demand as a choral adjudicator, clinician, and director of Honor/All-State Choirs throughout North America, Europe, Asia, New Zealand, Australia, and Africa. Since 1988, he has served as Artistic Director of the Tallahassee Community Chorus. Dr. Thomas has been honored with numerous awards including the African Diaspora Sacred Music Living Legend award, the Chorus America Distinguished Service Award, the ACDA Robert Shaw Award, and the NCCO Lifetime Achievement Award. He is currently the Vice-President of the National ACDA.

Esteemed guest conductor Anton Armstrong will conduct the National Festival Chorus in a varied program of choral works including Haydn’s “God of Life” ​(​The Seasons), Clausen’s “Kyrie” ​(​Memorial), Susan LaBarr’s ​”Hold Fast to Dreams,” and more. Anton Armstrong is currently Tosdal Professor of Music at St. Olaf College. In February 2005, The St. Olaf Choir shared the stage with the Mormon Tabernacle Choir at the Walt Disney Hall in Los Angeles, California. Active nationally and internationally, engagements have included the World Youth Choir in Venezuela, the Zimriya-The World Assembly of Choirs, the Formosa Singers of Taipei, and the Prague Proms International Music Festival sponsored by the Czech National Symphony Orchestra. He has been featured as a clinician at the Fourth World Symposium on Choral Music in Sydney, Australia and the Eighth World Symposium in Copenhagen, Denmark, among others.

The concert will also include a performance from The Florida A&M University Concert Choir, led by director Mark Butler.