The Wesleyan Singers will present a concert, “In Memoria Aeterna: Remembering Nathaniel,” in memory of former member Nathaniel Parsley on Tuesday, March 12 at 7 p.m. at the First Presbyterian Church. Parsley, who sang with the Wesleyan Singers for four years, died in October 2018.
The 40-voice choir is under the direction of Professor Dennis Jewett and is accompanied by James Wells (’14), adjunct instructor and music director of St. Stephen Cathedral.
The centerpiece of the concert is a contemporary piece entitled “Please Stay” that addresses suicide prevention.
“The text of “Please Stay,” says ‘Don’t let your worst day be your last. The storm is strong but it will pass. You think you can’t go on another day, but please stay,'” Wesleyan Professor Dennis Jewett said.
The concert will also include “In Memoria Aeterna” by Antonio Vivaldi and arrangements of hymns, settings of scripture, spirituals and “You WIll be Found” from the Broadway musical “Dear Evan Hansen.”
Jewett said that the selections represent the type of choral music Parsley sang. Parsley was a music major but planned to be a Methodist minister.
“Nathaniel was a vibrant member of our college community. He had graduated from South Spencer High School. He played in the band, sang in Wesleyan Singers, sang in the Owensboro Symphony Chorus, participated in campus ministry, and went on mission trips,” Jewett said. “He was friendly and kind and genuinely cared for people. He had served as youth minister in a church and had been appointed to be the pastor of a small congregation in Indiana. He was completing his last few credits to graduate, but was taken from us last October.”
The concert in memory of Nathaniel is free and open to the public. The church is located at 1328 Griffith Ave.
