Mount Marty to Hold Annual Vespers Concert

Mount Marty University invites the community to celebrate the sounds of the Christmas season at the 41st annual Vespers Concert on Saturday, December 9, 2023. Two performances will be held, one at 4:00 p.m. and one at 7:00 p.m. at Bishop Marty Chapel. 

Featuring the talents of the Mount Marty Choir under the direction of the university's new Assistant Professor of Music and Director of Choral Activities Dr. Tyler Thress, Vespers tells the story of the birth of Christ through scripture and song. 

"This year's program is going back to the beginning," says Dr. Thress. "My colleagues and I have been very conscious in crafting a program that reflects the Catholic and Benedictine inheritance of Mount Marty and Sacred Heart Monastery. We are returning to a structure more closely resembling Vespers as laid out in St. Benedict's Rule 1500 years ago." 

Once again, the Mount Marty band, directed by Todd Carr, will perform traditional Vespers music before the choral concert, starting at 3:30 p.m. and 6:30 p.m. "Gathering our campus, Yankton, and monastic communities to celebrate Christ and this long-standing tradition is an indescribable joy," says Carr. 

The performance is free and open to the public. No ticket will be required for entry. Mount Marty University thanks the Yankton Benedictines of Sacred Heart Monastery for graciously sponsoring this event. South Dakota Public Broadcasting will record and televise this event at 10:00 p.m. CST on Christmas Eve, December 24, 2023. 

For more information, please contact Dr. Tyler Thress at tyler.thress@mountmarty.edu or (605)-668-1539. 

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About Mount Marty University

Founded in 1936 by the Benedictine Sisters of Sacred Heart Monastery, Mount Marty University is South Dakota's only Catholic institution of higher education. Located along the bluffs of the Missouri River in Yankton, with additional locations in Watertown and Sioux Falls, Mount Marty offers undergraduate and graduate degrees focusing on student and alumni success in high-demand fields such as health sciences, education, criminal justice, business, accounting, and more. A community of learners in the Benedictine tradition, Mount Marty emphasizes academic excellence and develops well-rounded students with intellectual competence, professional and personal skills and moral, spiritual and social values. To learn more, visit mountmarty.edu.