Durant Daily Democrat 21 May 1939.

Work of Durant Chorus Praised By Tennessean

The Durant high school chorus got a very fine notice after its very first concert on the present trip to Baltimore and Washington.  The big audience which heard the Durant youngsters at Peabody Teachers College at Nashville, was “somewhat surprised at how good we were,” Lara Hoggard, director, wrote, and following is a write up of the concert by Alvin S. Wiggers, music critic of the Nashville Tennessean.

By  Alvin S. Wiggers

On their way to the National Convention of Music Clubs in Baltimore, Md., the Durant, Okla. high school A Cappella Choir gave a concert in the Social-Religious night before a large audience.

The choir is made up of 27 girls and 25 boys and was let by Lara Hoggard who announced each number and gave entertaining explanations of each.  He conducts with skill and enthusiasm, and the young people responded to his slightest signal.

Everything was from memory, and the fine tone shading and intonation of this excellent group of singers was of a very high order.  There is a lot of good unaccompanied singing these days, but these high school youngsters are really outstanding.

Mozart’s “Adoramus Te”, Palestrina’s beautiful “Darkness Descended,” for Good Friday, and “Ave Regina,” by a contemporary Spanish composer, were sung with smooth finish.  The voices sounded often like an Aelion harp, and the basses came out with rich organ tones.

A composition of almost instrumental type was followed by “Two Kings,: by the American composer, Joseph Clokey.  Christiansen, a great choral conductor and composer was represented by the “Spring” section of his work, “From Grief to Glory,” and the voices represented the rushing waters admirably.

Some of the most beautiful numbers were on the latter part of the program.  Cesar Cui’s “Nocturne” was sung with lovely tone coloring, Nobel Cain’s “roll, Chariot, Roll,” in the Negro style, was applauded most of all, and “out of the Silence,” by the Englishman, Cyril Jenkins, closed an interesting program, splendidly sung.