The Concordia Seminary Chorus, under the direction of Rev. Henry V. Gerike announces the release of a new CD titled "Hope." The CD is the eighth recording released by the Chorus in the past 13 years. It was recorded in Concordia Seminary, St. Louis' Chapel of St. Timothy and St. Titus, utilizing the Chapel's 63-rank Casavant organ.

"We are pleased to offer this recording and the hope that it proclaims to its listeners," commented Gerike. "The title for the CD was carefully selected to reflect the hope that God has given us through His Son, Jesus Christ. This hope is summarized in 1 Peter 1:3, 'Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In His great mercy He has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.' It is this hope that the Seminary Chorus has proclaimed through song over its 102-year history."

Selections on "Hope" include:

"I Bind unto Myself Today" - K. Lee Scott
"Create in Me a Clean Heart" - Healey Wilan
"Christ Is Arisen" - Henry V. Gerike
"The King of Love" - Henry V. Gerike
"The Head That Once Was Crowned" - Henry V. Gerike
"Glory Be to God the Father" - William B. Heyne
"Day by Day" - Martin How
"O Gladsome Light, O Grace" - Claude Goudimel
"Behold, Now Bless the Lord" - Ippolitov-Ivanov
"Nunc Dimittis" - Carl Schalk
"My Hope Is Built - Henry V. Gerike
"O Lord, I Love the Habitation" - Mark Bender
"Lord, Thee I Love" - Donald Busarow
"Now, My Tongue, the Mystery" - Henry V. Gerike
"Alleluia to Jesus" - Henry V. Gerike

Also premiered on "Hope" are Donald Bussarow's setting of Isaiah 55, "Seek the Lord," commissioned by the Chorus in 2002 and Healey Willan's "Missa Brevis," commissioned by Concordia Seminary, St. Louis, students in 1954. This selection is recorded on "Hope" by Laudamus, a choir of 34 Chorus members.

"Hope" is also a remembrance of the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Chorus, which was first organized in 1902. To celebrate this milestone, 85 alumni singers returned to the Seminary campus in May 2002 to rehearse and record three of the selections included on the CD ("I Bind unto Myself Today," "Day by Day" and "Nunc Dimittis," which was commissioned by the Chorus from Carl Shalk for its Centennial).

The artwork, "And His Name is the Word of God", painted by Richard Caemmerer, Jr., is featured on the CD cover. It was owned by the late Rev. John E. Meyer, former alumni director for Concordia Seminary. Upon Meyer's death, the painting was donated to the Concordia Seminary art collection. Meyer was very supportive of the Chorus and assisted in the gathering of the 85 alumni singers to record the three selections featured on the CD.

The CD is dedicated to the late Lila Alice Gerike, mother of Rev. Gerike. Memorials offered upon her death in 2003 assisted in the production costs associated with the CD. She is described on the CD jacket as "a mother, pastor's wife, seamstress and singer - glowing in hope."

The CD is available for $15 through the Concordia Seminary Bookstore. For more information on "Hope" or the previous recordings of the Chorus, contact the Bookstore at (314) 505-7315 or e-mail [email protected].