
	BYU-Hawaii Polynesian Cultural Center Laie Hawaii Temple


	Laie From the Heart See the Repertoire Featured Musical Groups

Sponsored by BYU-Hawaii and the Polynesian Cultural Center this program provides an exciting look into music from around the world as well as BYU-Hawaii's own music program.

Featured Musical Groups:

BYU-HAWAII CONCERT CHOIR

The BYU-Hawaii Concert Choir is a versatile, select vocal ensemble of carefully auditioned singers. In recent years, the ensemble has achieved a high level of performance in classical oratorio literature as well as international folk music, American musical theater selections, and art music of Europe, the Americas, and the South Pacific. Past international performance tours have been to New Zealand, Fiji, Tonga, Taiwan and Singapore. Seeking a combination of fine musicianship in a varied visual and dramatic presentation, the group frequently surprises their audiences with colorfully staged numbers and a variety of accompanying instruments. Members are chosen on an audition basis from a pool of talented musicians. Many students in the group are music majors who are also studying private voice, piano, theory, and music history. This has produced an ensemble that has been called a "center of excellence" on the BYU-Hawaii campus. The Concert Choir is sponsored by the Music Department of the Division of Fine Arts at Brigham Young University - Hawaii Campus. The Fine Arts Division offers Bachelor degrees in Music and Art.

BYU-HAWAII MEN'S CHORUS & WOMEN'S CHORUS - "Women of Naleonahe"

Men's Choir women's choir

The Brigham Young University-Hawaii men's and women's choirs are no-auditioned. The students are from all majors (including music), and come from countries all over the world. In fact, more than half of each choir is made up of students from countries outside of the United States. Their home countries include: Tonga, Samoa, Philippines, Mongolia, Japan, Korea, Taiwan, New Zealand, Australia, Peru, Spain, Switzerland, Brazil, Cambodia, Fiji, Guam, Kiribati, Malaysia, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Singapore, Tahiti, Thailand, Yugoslavia, Papua New Guinea, Sweden, and the United States. One third of choir members do not speak English as their native language. Under the direction of Merrilee Webb, the choirs have recently performed in several places including the BYU-Hawaii Donor Dinner, the Laie Temple Visitors Center, the Honolulu Tabernacle, and at various Devotionals and firesides. Web says the choirs are having the time of their lives singing with people from around the world and proclaiming the gospel to everyone they sing for.

BYU-HAWAII JAZZ BAND

The Brigham Young University-Hawaii Jazz Ensemble is a seventeen member, big-band style jazz orchestra that has a long history and tradition. This year's ensemble consists of talented music students from Oahu, Kauai, Maui, Tonga and the U.S. mainland. In recent years, successful performance tours have taken the group to countries throughout the Pacific and Asia. Under third-year director and percussionist Darren Duerden, the ensemble has taken on a more distinctively Latin sound and performances have frequently drawn salsa dancers from the audience to the dance floor. The band is preparing for a performance tour to Maui in March 2003.

BYU-HAWAII SHAKA STEEL

Shaka Steel, the steel drum band from Brigham Young University-Hawaii on the North shore of Oahu, was formed in the fall of 2001 and is one of the newest performing ensembles at the University. Under the direction of Dr. Darren Duerden, percussionist and Instrumental Music Coordinator at the University, the 12-15 member ensemble performs the lively, fast-paced music of the Caribbean and Latin America on steel drums or "pans," native instruments of Trinidad. Students from the ensemble reflect the multi-national student body of the university. This year's ensemble has had students from Kauai, Oahu, Thailand, Tonga, The Czech Republic, Mongolia and the U.S. mainland. Audiences are often found dancing in their seats to the authentic sounds of calypso, salsa, soca and samba. Besides performances on Oahu, the band completed a successful performance tour to Kauai in the spring of 2002 and is preparing for a tour to Maui in March 2003. The director, Darren Duerden has been a performer and teacher of steel drums for over fifteen years. His wife Jennifer is also an experienced steel band director and an accomplished arranger. Both Darren and Jennifer have many arrangements for the steel band published.

BYU-HAWAII POLYNESIAN DRUM ENSEMBLE

Ka Pa Kani Ko'ele O Laie is the name of the Polynesian drum ensemble at Brigham Young University-Hawaii. The title of the group, in Hawaiian, means "The Drum Academy of Laie." Formed in the fall of 2001 by Darren Duerden and drum instructor Lloyd Chandler of The Polynesian Cultural Center, this ensemble is one of the only University ensembles of its kind in the country. Open to all interested University students, the group ranges in size from 8-20 members. The focus of the course is on the drumming techniques of the Pacific Islands with special emphasis on the contemporary practices of Tahiti. While the ensemble serves to both train performers for the Cultural Center and help University students broaden their understanding of Pacific Islands Music, it is BYU-Hawaii's newest performing ensemble and it has only begun to entertain.

Music Directors:

DARREN DUERDEN

Darren Duerden is the instrumental music coordinator and percussion instructor at Brigham Young University - Hawaii. He directs the Jazz ensemble, the newly formed steel drum band, Shaka Steel, and oversees a Tahitian drumming ensemble as well. Additionally, he teaches music history and coordinates the music technology studio. Darren earned his Doctorate and Master's degrees at Florida State University in percussion performance and his Bachelor's degree at Brigham Young University in music education. A native of Salt Lake City, Utah, he has performed professionally and with university ensembles all over the world. He has been associated with the Mississippi Symphony, The Tallahassee Symphony, The Utah Chamber Artists, Ballet West, Sundance Summer Theatre and numerous other musical organizations in the South and the Mountain West. He currently performs with the Honolulu Symphony. Prior to his appointment at BYU-Hawaii, his first tenure was as a high school teacher in Kearns, Utah. From there, he taught at Florida State University as a graduate assistant, at Mississippi Valley State University, and at Holmes Community College in central Mississippi. Having a particular affinity for the music of the Caribbean and having traveled to Trinidad for the first time this past summer, Darren has organized the first steel drum ensemble at BYU-Hawaii. With his wife Jennifer, he has directed professional and university steel bands in Utah, Florida, Mississippi and now Hawaii. He is the co-founder of Steele Appeal, Utah's first professional steel band, and Steel Appeal Publications, a desk-top publishing company of original arrangements and compositions for the steel band. His music is also published by Panyard, Inc. and T Hammer ropical . Besides the newly formed steel band, Darren has also organized the first Tahitian drumming ensemble at BYU-Hawaii working with colleague Lloyd Chandler, percussionist from the Polynesian Cultural Center. This new seven-member group will be yet another instrumental performing ensemble from the university. Darren and his wife Jennifer reside in Laie with their daughter Callie and son Bret.

JAMES SMITH

James A. Smith is in his twenty-sixth year as director of choral and vocal activities at BYU Hawaii. He is director of the acclaimed Concert Choir, which has been called a "center of excellence" by BYU-Hawaii President Eric Shumway. Under Dr. Smith's leadership, the Concert Choir has undertaken successful concert tours of Fiji, Tonga, New Zealand, Taiwan and Singapore. Past oratorio performances of the choir with a contracted orchestra from members of the Honolulu Symphony have included Handel's Messiah, Judas Maccabaeus and Dixit Dominus, Mendelssohn's Elijah, Mozart's Requiem, Bradshaw's Restoration Oratorio, Rutter's Requiem and Gloria. Dr. Smith is a past president of the Hawaii chapter of the American Choral Director's Association and the National Association of Teachers of Singing. He has twice been a guest conductor for the world-renowned Mormon Tabernacle Choir on their television broadcast, "Music and the Spoken Word." The Concert Choir completed a successful four-day tour of the island of Maui in April of 2002. Future activities for the school year 2002-2003 will be to serve as host for the Hawaii All-State Honor Choir festival with guest conductor Dr. Edith Copley of Northern Arizona University. The Choir is also approved for an extended international tour of Japan and Korea.

MERRILEE WEB

Merrilee Web received her Bachelor and her Masters degrees from BYU in Music Education. In 1983 she was chosen as BYU's Most Outstanding Musician. After graduation she taught choral music in public schools for 12 years. She is currently serving as the president of Sunshine Audio, Inc and owns Infinity Business Ventures recording studio. She is also an associate director of the Young Americans and travels with them worldwide. Webb came to BYU Hawaii in August 2002 to teach the men's and women's choirs, theory skills classes, private voice, and some education classes. She finds it difficult to put her feelings about the men's and women's choirs into words. "I get to teach people from all over the world who are from countries I've never heard of and who have names I have to practice saying," she said. "I get to teach people who have a lot of musical experience as they sit next to people who have little or no experience and together we create beautiful music. Our lives are changed because we crossed paths. We laugh a lot! We talk about our mission here at this university; how we can promote peace throughout the world as we go back to our countries. We sing about Christ and I love that I can teach and talk openly about Him."