Daily Press file photo Members of the Bay de Noc Choral Society are shown practicing for the Choral’s spring concert in this file photo. The choral will present this year’s Spring Concert on Sunday, April 16 at 1:30 p.m. at Bethany Lutheran Church in Escanaba. The focus of the concert will be music written about war and peace.

ESCANABA — The Bay de Noc Choral Society will present a Spring Concert on Sunday, April 16 at 1:30 p.m. Bethany Lutheran Church in Escanaba will once again host this annual event. The focus of the concert will be music written about war and peace. Selections for the concert include “0 Day of Peace,” “Where Have All The Flowers Gone?” by Pete Seeger and an arrangement of the spiritual “Down By the Riverside.”

A highlight will be Haydn’s “Mass In Time Of War” (Paukenmesse). Haydn composed it at a time that Austria was waging a losing war against France as Napoleon continued to win every battle. The “Agnus Dei” section is a prayer for peace and for victory. A recently written composition to be performed is “On the Faces of the World” by Mark Burrows. This piece is accompanied solely by percussion & is sung in many different languages, each joining together in a call for peace. Two selections by British composer John Rutter are included in the concert. “The Lord Is My Shepherd” from Rutter’s “Requiem” and a capella setting of an anonymous Ukrainian prayer that was composed in 2022. In “A Ukrainian Prayer”

Rutter reflected on the war in Ukraine and says of his composition “How can a composer respond to a global tragedy? The first thing I wanted to do was write some music that would respond in my own way. I hope the meaning of this text will resonate in people’s hearts and reach out to the people of Ukraine in their hour of need.”

The text is sung in Ukrainian and the English translation of the prayer is “Good Lord, protect Ukraine. Give her strength, courage, faith, hope. Amen”. There are soloists throughout the concert and instruments including First Bells Hand Bell Choir, flute, violin, interesting percussion accompaniment and more.

There is no charge for the concert and a free will offering will be collected to help pay for the expenses of putting on the performance. A portion of the collection will be donated to a Ukrainian relief fund. The Bay de Noc Choral Society, directed by Ann Wood & accompanied by John Ignatowski on the piano and organ, is a four-part choir that has been delighting audiences since the 1960s. They welcome new members and all singers are encouraged to join the weekly Tuesday night rehearsals. The group will resume rehearsals in September to prepare for the Christmas concert.