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<> Their Legacy "Messiah" Performances <>
In this particular era, the Lindsborg Messiah at Bethany was noted as "no other like it in the country!“
"There is only one Lindsborg and I wish to have a part in this!" -- Austrian Empire born opera singer Ernestine Schumann-Heink
-- Dr. Emory Lindquist's Bethany in Kansas
In this particular era, the Lindsborg Messiah at Bethany was noted as "no other like it in the country!“
"There is only one Lindsborg and I wish to have a part in this!" -- Austrian Empire born opera singer Ernestine Schumann-Heink
-- Dr. Emory Lindquist's Bethany in Kansas
"Messiah" Performers, Venues & Audiences, Press and Broadcasts
19th & 20th Centuries
19th & 20th Centuries
Messiah Auditorium
1895 - 1946
On the Bethany College Campus
Messiah Auditorium was also referred to as Ling Auditorium or Ling Gymnasium which had a seating capacity of 4,000.
1895 - 1946
On the Bethany College Campus
Messiah Auditorium was also referred to as Ling Auditorium or Ling Gymnasium which had a seating capacity of 4,000.
World Renown National & International Performers at Lindsborg's Bethany College
"in their day"
~ a sampling ~
Italian Eloise Vitti in 1899 from Milan first performed in the Messiah at Bethany College. This marked the beginning of international professional opera singers and instrumentalist performing at Bethany's Messiah Auditorium in the early years and later at the College's Presser Hall.
Names of these performers are organized according to "their birth year" with a link to their Wikipedia information:
They were the "stars" of their time, so going to their "link" will be well worth your while, as I have not had the time to really showcase how brilliant each was in sharing their gifts with Lindsborg and their world. --fc
----
Names of these performers are organized according to "their birth year" with a link to their Wikipedia information:
They were the "stars" of their time, so going to their "link" will be well worth your while, as I have not had the time to really showcase how brilliant each was in sharing their gifts with Lindsborg and their world. --fc
----
Lillian Nordica (December 12, 1857 – May 10, 1914) Performed in Lindsborg in 1902 & 1904
American born opera singer, on the major stage in Europe and the US, one of the foremost dramatic sopranos of the late 19th century and early 20th century
Marcella Sembrich (February 15, 1858 – January 11, 1935) Performed in Lindsborg in ca. 1906
the stage name of Prakseda Marcelina Kochańska, a Polish coloratura, having an important international singing career, chiefly at the New York Metropolitan Opera and the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, London
Eugène Ysaÿe (July 16, 1858 – May 12, 1931)
Belgian violinist, "The King of the Violin,"composer and conductor
Ernestine Schumann-Heink (June 15, 1861 – November 17, 1936) Performed in Lindsborg in 1913, 1916, 1926
a German Bohemian American, operatic contralto Stated with one of her visits, “There is only one Lindsborg and I wish to have a part in this."
Olive Fremstad (Anna Olivia Rundquist) (March 14, 1871 - April 21, 1951) Performed in Lindsborg in 19
Swedish American opera diva in both ranges of mezzo-soprano and soprano
Johanna Emilia Agnes Gadski-Tauscher (15 June 1872 – 22 February 1932) Performed in Lindsborg in 1905
A German soprano, she was blessed with a secure, powerful, ringing voice, fine musicianship and an excellent technique. These attributes enabled her to enjoy a highly successful career in New York City and London, performing heavy dramatic roles in the German and Italian repertoires.
Pau Casals i Defilló (December 29, 1876 – October 22, 1973) Performed in Lindsborg on April 4, 1920
a Spanish, cellist and conductor
Frances Davis Alda (31 May 1879 – 18 September 1952) Performed in Lindsborg in 1923
New Zealand-born, Australian-raised operatic soprano, achieved fame for the first three decades of the 20th century due to her outstanding singing voice, fine technique and colorful personality, as well as her frequent onstage partnerships with the famous Italian operatic tenor Enrico Caruso.at the Metropolitan Opera, New York
Julia Claussen (June 11, 1879 – May 1, 1941)
A Swedish mezzo-soprano made her New York City Metropolitan Opera debut in 1917
Amelita Galli-Curci (November 18, 1882 – November 26, 1963) Performed in Lindsborg in 1918
An Italian coloratura soprano, one of the most popular operatic singers of the early 20th century.
Efrem Zimbalist, Sr. (April 21 [O.S. April 9] 1889 or 1890 – February 22, 1985) Performed in Lindsborg in 1937
A Russian Jew, a renown American concert violinist, composer, teacher, conductor.
Joseph Szigeti (September 5, 1892 – February 19, 1973) Hungarian violinist performed regularly around the world.
Richard Alexander Crooks (June 26, 1900 – September 29, 1972) Performed in Lindsborg in 1929
An American tenor and a leading singer at the New York Metropolitan Opera.
Gregor Piatigorsky ( April 17 [O.S. April 4] 1903 – August 6, 1976) Performed in Lindsborg in 1941
He was a Russian-born American cellist.
Jan Peerce (born Jacob Pincus Perelmuth; June 3, 1904 – December 15, 1984) Performed in Lindsborg in 1969
He was an American operatic tenor on the operatic and Broadway concert stages, in solo recitals, and as a recording artist. He is the father of film director Larry Peerce.
Maria Augusta von Trapp (January 26,1905 – March 28 1987) Performed in Lindsborg in 1950
The mother of the Von Trapp Family which were all singers. Their story became the Broadway musical The Sound of Music (1959) and then the 1965 film
Marion Nevada Talley (December 20, 1906 – January 3, 1983) Performed in Lindsborg in 1928
She was an American opera coloratura soprano. In 1926, she was the youngest prima donna to have made a debut at the Metropolitan Opera.
Ellabelle Davis (17 March 1907 — 15 November 1960) Performed in Lindsborg in 1947
She was an American singer who began her musical career at The Town Hall NYC in 1942. Davis played the lead role of Aida during her 1946 performance at the Opera Nacional in Mexico and in 1949 as Aida at La Scala. In 1950 she recorded for Decca. in February 1950. and was inducted into New York's New Rochelle Walk of Fame in 2011.
Johan Jonatan "Jussi" Björling (5 February 1911[1] – 9 September 1960) Performed in Lindsborg in 1939
He was a Swedish tenor. One of the leading operatic singers of the 20th century, Björling appeared for many years at the Metropolitan Opera in New York City, at major European opera houses, including the Royal Opera House in London and La Scala in Milan. He sang the Italian, French and Russian opera repertory with taste.
Blanch Thebom (September 19, 1915 – March 23, 2010)
an American operatic mezzo-soprano, voice teacher, opera director; part of the first wave of American opera singers in highly successful international careers
Birgit Nilsson (May 17, 1918 – December 25, 2005)
a celebrated Swedish dramatic soprano
Issac Stern (July 21,1920 – September 22, 2001) Performed in Lindsborg in 1954
Jewish, born in Russian, a renown American violinist and conductor
Rolf Verner David Björling (December 25, 1928 – March 31, 1993) Performed in Lindsborg in 1975
He was a Swedish tenor. He was the son of jussi björling and the father of the opera singer Raymond Björling.
Sources: Information from Dr. Emory Lindquist's 1975 Bethany in Kansas, the history of a college, Bethany College Publications Editor historian writer A. John Pearson ormer Bethany College archivist, and Mrs. Elizabeth Jaderborg's 1976 Why Lindsborg?
American born opera singer, on the major stage in Europe and the US, one of the foremost dramatic sopranos of the late 19th century and early 20th century
Marcella Sembrich (February 15, 1858 – January 11, 1935) Performed in Lindsborg in ca. 1906
the stage name of Prakseda Marcelina Kochańska, a Polish coloratura, having an important international singing career, chiefly at the New York Metropolitan Opera and the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, London
Eugène Ysaÿe (July 16, 1858 – May 12, 1931)
Belgian violinist, "The King of the Violin,"composer and conductor
Ernestine Schumann-Heink (June 15, 1861 – November 17, 1936) Performed in Lindsborg in 1913, 1916, 1926
a German Bohemian American, operatic contralto Stated with one of her visits, “There is only one Lindsborg and I wish to have a part in this."
Olive Fremstad (Anna Olivia Rundquist) (March 14, 1871 - April 21, 1951) Performed in Lindsborg in 19
Swedish American opera diva in both ranges of mezzo-soprano and soprano
Johanna Emilia Agnes Gadski-Tauscher (15 June 1872 – 22 February 1932) Performed in Lindsborg in 1905
A German soprano, she was blessed with a secure, powerful, ringing voice, fine musicianship and an excellent technique. These attributes enabled her to enjoy a highly successful career in New York City and London, performing heavy dramatic roles in the German and Italian repertoires.
Pau Casals i Defilló (December 29, 1876 – October 22, 1973) Performed in Lindsborg on April 4, 1920
a Spanish, cellist and conductor
Frances Davis Alda (31 May 1879 – 18 September 1952) Performed in Lindsborg in 1923
New Zealand-born, Australian-raised operatic soprano, achieved fame for the first three decades of the 20th century due to her outstanding singing voice, fine technique and colorful personality, as well as her frequent onstage partnerships with the famous Italian operatic tenor Enrico Caruso.at the Metropolitan Opera, New York
Julia Claussen (June 11, 1879 – May 1, 1941)
A Swedish mezzo-soprano made her New York City Metropolitan Opera debut in 1917
Amelita Galli-Curci (November 18, 1882 – November 26, 1963) Performed in Lindsborg in 1918
An Italian coloratura soprano, one of the most popular operatic singers of the early 20th century.
Efrem Zimbalist, Sr. (April 21 [O.S. April 9] 1889 or 1890 – February 22, 1985) Performed in Lindsborg in 1937
A Russian Jew, a renown American concert violinist, composer, teacher, conductor.
Joseph Szigeti (September 5, 1892 – February 19, 1973) Hungarian violinist performed regularly around the world.
Richard Alexander Crooks (June 26, 1900 – September 29, 1972) Performed in Lindsborg in 1929
An American tenor and a leading singer at the New York Metropolitan Opera.
Gregor Piatigorsky ( April 17 [O.S. April 4] 1903 – August 6, 1976) Performed in Lindsborg in 1941
He was a Russian-born American cellist.
Jan Peerce (born Jacob Pincus Perelmuth; June 3, 1904 – December 15, 1984) Performed in Lindsborg in 1969
He was an American operatic tenor on the operatic and Broadway concert stages, in solo recitals, and as a recording artist. He is the father of film director Larry Peerce.
Maria Augusta von Trapp (January 26,1905 – March 28 1987) Performed in Lindsborg in 1950
The mother of the Von Trapp Family which were all singers. Their story became the Broadway musical The Sound of Music (1959) and then the 1965 film
Marion Nevada Talley (December 20, 1906 – January 3, 1983) Performed in Lindsborg in 1928
She was an American opera coloratura soprano. In 1926, she was the youngest prima donna to have made a debut at the Metropolitan Opera.
Ellabelle Davis (17 March 1907 — 15 November 1960) Performed in Lindsborg in 1947
She was an American singer who began her musical career at The Town Hall NYC in 1942. Davis played the lead role of Aida during her 1946 performance at the Opera Nacional in Mexico and in 1949 as Aida at La Scala. In 1950 she recorded for Decca. in February 1950. and was inducted into New York's New Rochelle Walk of Fame in 2011.
Johan Jonatan "Jussi" Björling (5 February 1911[1] – 9 September 1960) Performed in Lindsborg in 1939
He was a Swedish tenor. One of the leading operatic singers of the 20th century, Björling appeared for many years at the Metropolitan Opera in New York City, at major European opera houses, including the Royal Opera House in London and La Scala in Milan. He sang the Italian, French and Russian opera repertory with taste.
Blanch Thebom (September 19, 1915 – March 23, 2010)
an American operatic mezzo-soprano, voice teacher, opera director; part of the first wave of American opera singers in highly successful international careers
Birgit Nilsson (May 17, 1918 – December 25, 2005)
a celebrated Swedish dramatic soprano
Issac Stern (July 21,1920 – September 22, 2001) Performed in Lindsborg in 1954
Jewish, born in Russian, a renown American violinist and conductor
Rolf Verner David Björling (December 25, 1928 – March 31, 1993) Performed in Lindsborg in 1975
He was a Swedish tenor. He was the son of jussi björling and the father of the opera singer Raymond Björling.
Sources: Information from Dr. Emory Lindquist's 1975 Bethany in Kansas, the history of a college, Bethany College Publications Editor historian writer A. John Pearson ormer Bethany College archivist, and Mrs. Elizabeth Jaderborg's 1976 Why Lindsborg?
Messiah Performance Venues & Audiences
"in their day"
~ a sampling ~
"in their day"
~ a sampling ~
May 13, 1918 -- Conductor Hagbard Brase /\
Camp Funston (west of Junction City, KS), 4,000 seats in the All Kansas Building for soldiers of the 89th Division. Bethany Oratorio Chorus traveled by Union Pacific Railroad filling 11 coaches
Camp Funston (west of Junction City, KS), 4,000 seats in the All Kansas Building for soldiers of the 89th Division. Bethany Oratorio Chorus traveled by Union Pacific Railroad filling 11 coaches
Camp Funston
Fort Riley, Kansas
Source: Emory Lindquist's 1975 Bethany in Kansas, the history of a college, pages 167-169
Fort Riley, Kansas
Source: Emory Lindquist's 1975 Bethany in Kansas, the history of a college, pages 167-169
"World War I was a grim reality, but "Messiah" concerts on May 13, 1918, provided an emotional uplift for soldiers of the 89th Division and others who both heard and performed that day at Camp Funston."
PHOTO and TEXT from Lindquist's book, page 160
PHOTO and TEXT from Lindquist's book, page 160
* * *
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
February 8-9, 1922 -- Conductor Hagbard Brase /\
Oklahoma City Coliseum to an audience of 15,000
The program referred to this as “the greatest Musical Event in the History of Oklahoma.”
Sponsored by Oklahoma State Teachers Association
Oklahoma City Coliseum to an audience of 15,000
The program referred to this as “the greatest Musical Event in the History of Oklahoma.”
Sponsored by Oklahoma State Teachers Association
* * *
Kansas City, Missouri
Source: Emory Lindquist's 1975 Bethany in Kansas, the history of a college, pages 167-169
Kansas City, Missouri
Source: Emory Lindquist's 1975 Bethany in Kansas, the history of a college, pages 167-169
"The Messiah was presented by the Bethany Oratorio Society in Kansas City, Missouri, as shown here for December 13 and 14, 1930."
PHOTO and TEXT from Lindquist's book, page 161
PHOTO and TEXT from Lindquist's book, page 161
November 18-19, 1922 -- Conductor Hagbard Brase /\
Kansas City, Missouri for the opening of the new American Royal Building for the American Royal Stock
Welcomed by the governors of Kansas and Missouri
14 Pullmans transported the Bethany Oratorio chorus of 600 and the orchestra of 70 there
December 14-15, 1929 -- Conductor Hagbard Brase /\
Kansas City, Missouri
Two concerts in Convention Hall sponsored by the Chamber of Commerce Attractions Committee, with profits going to Presser Hall, the new home of the “Messiah Chorus."
Saturday night’s attendance was 4,747, Sunday, 9,036, the largest crowd ever to hear the Bethany Oratorio Society
December 13-14, 1930 -- Conductor Hagbard Brase /\
Kansas City Missouri more than 9,000 attend, with $5,000 received going to the Presser Hall Fund,
Sponsored by the Kansas City Chamber of Commerce
November Sunday, 1945 -- Conductor Hagbard Brase /\
Kansas City Missouri
The Bethany Oratorio Society joined the Kansas City Philharmonic Orchestra in the Municipal Auditorium observing the Salvation Army’s 80th anniversary with an audience of 12,000.
The program also included General Evangeline Booth, daughter of Army’s founder, General Geroge C. Marshall. A message from President Harry Truman was read, parts of program were broadcasted by WDAF radio.
A special 10 coach train took the chorus to Kansas City on Sunday morning while en route 6 pastors conducted church services
---------------
/\ " Upon Brase's retirement in 1946 as conductor, a well-known music critic observed that
'one of the last of the finest type of European music masters in America
had raised his baton for the last time.' "
Source: Dr. Emory Lindquist's 1984, Hagbard Brase: Beloved Music Master, page 164
---------------
/\ " Upon Brase's retirement in 1946 as conductor, a well-known music critic observed that
'one of the last of the finest type of European music masters in America
had raised his baton for the last time.' "
Source: Dr. Emory Lindquist's 1984, Hagbard Brase: Beloved Music Master, page 164
---------------
Kansas City, Missouri
Source: Emory Lindquist's 1975 Bethany in Kansas, the history of a college, pages 167-169
"In 1945 the Oratorio Society returned to Kansas City to perform at a Salvation Army anniversary program."
PHOTO and TEXT from Lindquist's book, page 161:
Source: Emory Lindquist's 1975 Bethany in Kansas, the history of a college, pages 167-169
"In 1945 the Oratorio Society returned to Kansas City to perform at a Salvation Army anniversary program."
PHOTO and TEXT from Lindquist's book, page 161:
Source: A. John Pearson Bethany College Publications Editor, former Bethany College archivist, Lindsborg News Record: "Renditions of Handel’s Messiah outside Lindsborg"
The Press
"in their day"
~ a sampling ~
Source: Emory Lindquist's 1975 Bethany in Kansas, the history of a college, pages 167-169
Ladies Home Journal, 1900 (the "first time" the Messiah Festival received national news media attention)
The April 1900 issue, page 15, by Charles M. Harger
- from Lindquist's book, page 167
Because of its surroundings, and uplifting by its earnest methods and teaching, the Easter performance of “The Messiah” by the Swedish colony at Lindsborg, in Central Kansas, is each spring one of the interesting events of the West. A musical festival that out on the comparatively sparsely settled prairies can bring together ten thousand people during Holy Week, many of them coming two hundred miles, must be excellent indeed. The growth of the audiences in this instance, year after year, indicates a thorough appreciation of a worthier rendering of Handel’s great oratorio.
The Swedes are a singing people, and the religious sentiment is strong in their hearts. The one cherished day for this colony of perhaps three thousand (3,000) families is Easter, and the chief glory thereof is “The Messiah.” The Lindsborg settlement dates back to 1869, when the Rev. Olof Olson led from Sweden the first comers and founded the colony on the unbroken prairies. The settlers toiled, and prospered, and saved. They were homesick for the scenes of childhood, but learned to love their new home. Amid the struggle against drought and storm they sang their folksongs of cheer.
… The concert engages the very best of the talent of the college, but it is not the event for which the auditors long.
That comes in the evening. The crisp, frosty air outside and the early darkness make the octagonal auditorium ablaze with the light, most alluring, and its four thousand seats are quickly filled. Over the gathering broods a tenderness appropriate to the memories of the occasion, its influence being manifest in hushed tones, as if this were indeed a service of the heart. Easter is not here, but its forerunner has shed abroad a spirit of consecration.
Before the audience is the chorus—tier on tier of men and maidens, nearly four hundred of them. Bunting and banners transform the stern outlines of the great stage. The men are in black; the maids in pink and white, the costumes making vivid contrast. Whole sections are in a flutter of light; others are somber and still. The central figure of all, occupying the place of honor, is the powerful organ, and supporting it the orchestra of forty (40) pieces. When the time arrives for the opening Doctor Swensson steps forward and in a few words tells the story of the first Easter—the prelude of the music that is to come.
A tremor passes over the ranks of the singers; they are rising to their feet. The orchestra breaks the stillness.
Chicago Tribune , 1913
- from Lindquist's book, page 167
In 1913 the music critic described the Lindsborg “Messiah” tradition in an article that was often quoted:
“It is not surprising, therefore, that this chorus attains a tone of surprising unity, and that in all matters of rhythmical and intervallic precision it is unsurpassed. The quality of the tone is beautiful. In all massive efforts it is of overwhelming sonority. Sopranos are remarkable for the purity, the flexibility, and smoothness of the tone produced and the confident ease with which they approach trying altitudes of pitch. The contraltos share the delicious sympathy of tone quality common to most American choruses. Tenors achieve brightness and aggressiveness, and the basses are splendidly sonorous...
The Messiah has been sung by many persons the world over, but it is doubtful if the choruses were ever better sung than when these trained voices, rehearsed for a year, burst forth in divine harmony. They sing it with the scriptural works in their hearts. It is a praise anthem to the God who had prospered them and kept them together.”
New York Times, 1939
- from Lindquist's book, page 168
Howard W. Turtle, in 1939 wrote: “When Brase begins his stern beat for one of the great choruses of the Messiah, he draws from the chorus a body of tone that is truly magnificent in its splendor. It is an expression in song from voices schooled to near perfection through years of training. But it is more than that. In Lindsborg, the Messiah is religion—as much a part of the Swedish peoples worship as the church services which they attend every Sunday. It is an outpouring of the story they believe—the voice of John the Baptist crying in the wilderness, the birth of Jesus, His ministry, His crucifixion, and the triumphant resurrection with its resounding ‘Hallelujah.’”
Reader’s Digest , 1944
- from Lindquist's book, page 168
in a feature article, “Oberammergau of the Plains,” in April, 1944, pointed out that the “Messiah” festival is called by critics ”the finest of its kind in the world.”
Washington Star, April 5, 1953
- from Lindquist's book, page 168
A musical saga, that has no equal in this or any other country, reaches its annual climax Easter Sunday in the performance of Handel’s Messiah. In the small Midwestern town of Lindsborg, Kansas, Handel’s great oratorio will be given today for the 197th time. For nearly three-quarters of a century it has been the inspiration of the daily life of the inhabitants. The story is one of the most thrilling in American history and in the annals of music. For the performance of the Messiah not only testifies to the cultural ideals of this community, but records the preservation until the present, of qualities of mind and spirit that inflamed the pioneers whose contribution to the greatness of this country was directed by God.
* * *
Radio Broadcasts
"in their day"
~ a sampling ~
Sources: A.John Pearson Bethany College Publications Editor and Messiah Bethany College Oratorio conductor professor Dr. Elmer Copley writings
Radio Broadcasts
"in their day"
~ a sampling ~
Sources: A.John Pearson Bethany College Publications Editor and Messiah Bethany College Oratorio conductor professor Dr. Elmer Copley writings
1939: National Broadcasting Company (NBC) broadcast Messiah performance selections throughout the nation
1945: The Office of War Information broadcast the Messiah to troops overseas
1949: Voice of America broadcast the Messiah abroad
Through the years National Radio continued these broadcasts as well as NBC periodically. It is always broadcast by radio.
1945: The Office of War Information broadcast the Messiah to troops overseas
1949: Voice of America broadcast the Messiah abroad
Through the years National Radio continued these broadcasts as well as NBC periodically. It is always broadcast by radio.
* * *
Television Broadcasts
"first time events"
Television Broadcasts
"first time events"
In 1981: Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) Kansas Public Telecommunications Service, Inc. (KPTS)
In celebration of Bethany College's and Messiah's performances centennials
A broadcast Messiah performance throughout the nation and internationally, 25,000,000 viewers
Hosted by Jim Lehrer of the nightly PBS “NewsHour” who interviewed Dr. Elmer Copley at intermission
In 1986: PBS KPTS' titled: "An American Easter"
A broadcast of the St. Matthew's Passion and the Messiah performances throughout the nation and internationally, viewership was in the millions
Hosted by Smithsonian World host David McCullough who interviewed Dr. Elmer Copley and his daughter soprano, Ms. Rebecca Copley. at intermission
In celebration of Bethany College's and Messiah's performances centennials
A broadcast Messiah performance throughout the nation and internationally, 25,000,000 viewers
Hosted by Jim Lehrer of the nightly PBS “NewsHour” who interviewed Dr. Elmer Copley at intermission
In 1986: PBS KPTS' titled: "An American Easter"
A broadcast of the St. Matthew's Passion and the Messiah performances throughout the nation and internationally, viewership was in the millions
Hosted by Smithsonian World host David McCullough who interviewed Dr. Elmer Copley and his daughter soprano, Ms. Rebecca Copley. at intermission
* * *
21st Century
Live Streaming
"first time events"
21st Century
Live Streaming
"first time events"
In 2020: Due to the Covid-19 Pandemic, there was only one Easter performance which was postponed until October with severely reduced chorus and orchestra members and no audience following masks worn by all and social distancing protocols in place.
In 2021: Due to the Covid-19 Pandemic, protocols were still in place, yet with additional performers and audience members.
In 2021: Due to the Covid-19 Pandemic, protocols were still in place, yet with additional performers and audience members.
* * *
- Presser Hall -
since March 29, 1929 for the
Messiah Performances
- as of 2008, the Presser Hall Auditorium has a seating capacity of 1,752 -
- Presser Hall -
since March 29, 1929 for the
Messiah Performances
- as of 2008, the Presser Hall Auditorium has a seating capacity of 1,752 -
Source: In Memoriam**Dr. Ernst F. Pihlblad, 1943
- Prince Wilhelm of Sweden and President Ernst Pihlblad at groundbreaking ceremony for Presser Hall in 1927 -
Presser Hall on the Bethany College Campus
Prince Wilhelm of Sweden was present for the groundbreaking ceremony for Presser Hall in 1927,
which would have a seating capacity in its auditorium of approximately 1,800.
In 2008, the seating capacity of Presser Hall numbered 1,752, per internet source.
In 2016, the Presser Hall stage was named the Copley Stage in honor of 18th Messiah conductor Dr. Elmer Copley and his wife Mrs. Ruth Copley.
* * *
Prince Wilhelm of Sweden was present for the groundbreaking ceremony for Presser Hall in 1927,
which would have a seating capacity in its auditorium of approximately 1,800.
In 2008, the seating capacity of Presser Hall numbered 1,752, per internet source.
In 2016, the Presser Hall stage was named the Copley Stage in honor of 18th Messiah conductor Dr. Elmer Copley and his wife Mrs. Ruth Copley.
* * *
Source: In Memoriam**Dr. Ernst F. Pihlblad, 1943
* * *
Swedes: TheWayTheyWere
~ restoring lost local histories ~
reconnecting past to present
* * *
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