Northrop Presents
An Evening of Organ & Choir:
Featuring University Singers and Northrop Organist Greg Zelek
2025-26 Northrop Season
Wednesday, April 29, 7 p.m. CT
In-person / Livestream
On-demand through May 3
Free for UMN students; registration required.
Northrop Organist Greg Zelek teams up with the University Singers, led by University of Minnesota professor and director of choral activities Matthew Mehaffey, for a can’t-miss concert blending choral and organ works. This lively program will feature a mix of selections written for choir and organ, including an arrangement of Louis Vierne’s “Kyrie” from “Messe Solennelle, Op. 16,” alongside inventive arrangements of pop hits — such as Harold Arlen’s “Over the Rainbow” and Queen’s “Bohemian Rhapsody” — highlighting the extraordinary range of both the singers and the magnificent Northrop organ. Join us to close out the 2025-26 Northrop Music Series with an electrifying program that showcases this powerful combination!
Articles & More
“Seeing and hearing Zelek in action helps explain why praise follows the organist everywhere.” — Isthmus
“Zelek, however, is the glue that holds everything together and is also the reason why the concerts can be labeled entertainment. Because they’re not just music; they are joyful productions. Zelek is a performer, not just a musician.” — Channel 3000
“Zelek was physically animated throughout the performance. His hands flew across three levels of keyboards while his feet worked the pedalboard like somebody playing Dance Dance Revolution in an arcade.” — Wisconsin State Journal
To Help You Decide
Explore Single Ticket Discounts *
- First Year Free Ticket for new UMN students and staff/faculty
- Children 17 and under: 50% off base price, always
- 20% off tickets for groups of 10 or more
*Some exclusions apply.
Related Event(s)
Know Before You Go
Event Information
- Apr 29 In-person Seating: General Admission, Ticket Required
- Performance and Livestream Begins: 7 p.m. CT
- Tickets & Online Access: Check the email you provided when you placed your order to locate your digital ticket. Be sure to check your spam or junk mail folders if you do not see them.
- Detailed Event Information: Check back for more information closer to the date.
If you need assistance, please call 612-624-2345, email umntix@umn.edu.
Planning Your Visit
Learn More - Explore These Themes
The content below derives from the Northrop Across Campus Program that supports Northrop's mission towards intersections between performing arts and education for the benefit of all participants now and for generations to come.
Find ways to make thematic connections to these suggested topics:
- Music: Organ, Classical, Choral, Education
- Arts and Cultural Leadership: Curatorial Practice
- Behavioral Sciences
Dive deeper with these resources that provide additional information about the performers, the history of the art form and the artistic process.
University of Minnesota Choral Ensembles website
"The Impact of Choir Singing on International Students’ Sense of Belonging, Loneliness and Wellbeing: A Controlled Evaluation of UQ Voices" — Behavioral Sciences
"Personality Traits of Choral Singers and Their Association With Perceived Mental Well-Being" — Behavioral Sciences
"Northrop and Its Reconditioned Aeolian-Skinner Opus 892" — The American Organist
Start a conversation about the performance or encourage reflection, using these questions as inspiration.
Greg Zelek, Northrop’s virtuosic resident organist, will collaborate with the University Singers at Northrop for An Evening of Organ and Choir. This pairing of Zelek with the University’s premier collegiate choral ensemble presents a significant educational and artistic opportunity, offering students the invaluable experience of collaborating with and learning from a professional artist, while providing Zelek a chance to engage with campus audiences.
- What creative and practical learning opportunities might be presented in this pairing, considering the organ will be a solo instrument accompanied by a host of singers creating together?
- Imagine you’re the Northrop organist. How would you strategically build an audience for the organ, an instrument which is often overlooked outside of church services and classical music settings? How might you collaborate with professors, students and local community members to engage audiences?
Conducted by Matthew Mehaffey, University Singers is the flagship choral ensemble of the University of Minnesota, studying classical and global repertoire for mixed chorus from the Renaissance through the 21st century. According to a 2022 study published in Behavioral Sciences,“Choral singers have significantly higher mean scores in extraversion and openness to experience … The choral singers scored significantly higher on agreeableness than the general population sample. This difference may be explained by the fact that singing in a choir requires teamwork and good interpersonal relationships.”
- What might be the creative and logistical challenges of coordinating a large mixed choir with University students? How might the various roles within a choir, such as singer, conductor, private instructor, teacher’s assistant or section leader support the overall mission of the ensemble?
- How might the social demands of collaborative musical performance develop prosocial personality traits like agreeableness, and what are the broader implications of these findings for studying the role of the arts in social and professional life?
- Considering the long-standing global tradition of singing as a spiritual, artistic and cultural practice, why might choir and communal singing be so impactful and transformative for both performers and audience members?
Acknowledgments
This activity is made possible by the voters of Minnesota through a Minnesota State Arts Board Operating Support grant, thanks to a legislative appropriation from the Arts and Cultural Heritage Fund.
