KU choir brings Mozart's sacred works to free Lawrence concert

A University of Kansas choir made up of students, staff and faculty will turn Corpus Christi Catholic Church into a free gateway to Mozart for Lawrence listeners. The Bales Choral Society’s spring concert is set for 7 p.m. Sunday, May 3, at the church on Bob Billings Parkway, with no ticket required and donations accepted for concert costs.

The program centers on two of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s best-known sacred works, Requiem and Ave Verum Corpus. Both were composed in 1791, the last year of Mozart’s life, giving the concert a strong historical thread as well as a local one. KU brass and percussion musicians will form the orchestra, and a chamber group from the society will perform Ave Verum Corpus.

Wolfgang Reisinger, the visiting professor of organ and church music for the 2025-26 academic year, is directing the ensemble. Reisinger, who is from Vienna, Austria, came to KU after the retirement of Dr. Michael Bauer, who served the university for 38 years. His connection to Mozart’s home city adds a fitting layer to the concert: Reisinger accompanied choir members on a February trip to Austria, where they attended the Rejoice Music Festival in Horn, toured Vienna and saw Mozart’s Magic Flute at the Volksoper Wien.

The Requiem will be conducted by graduate students Levi Kelley and Cory Scott Reames. Soloists listed for the concert are Stephanie Ruppen, soprano; Toni Mae Rainey, alto; Genaro Mendez, tenor; and Paul Joseph, bass.

KU says the Bales Choral Society typically presents concerts at the end of the fall and spring semesters, making the May performance part of a larger campus choral season rather than a stand-alone event. The 2025-26 repertoire also includes John Rutter’s Gloria, underscoring the group’s range beyond Mozart.

For Lawrence and Douglas County residents, the draw is simple: a high-level KU performance without a price barrier, carried by singers and musicians who live and work on the same campus and in the same community. The concert offers an easy way to experience the university’s arts scene in a neighborhood church, with music that reaches from Vienna to Bob Billings Parkway.