Countertenor Reginald Mobley's Feb. 8 concert to offer rich selection of works

OSWEGO -- Accomplished countertenor Reginald Mobley will perform works of Bach, Handel and other Baroque and Classical greats, as well as songs from Cole Porter and more, in a concert at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 8, in Sheldon Hall ballroom, as part of SUNY Oswego's Ke-Nekt Chamber Music Series.

SUNY Oswego music faculty member Dr. Mihoko Tsutsumi, host for the evening, said audience members could expect Mobley to engage both their hearts and their minds. Mobley's singing is "natural and effortless," she said. Tsutsumi will deliver a preconcert talk at 7 p.m.

Mobley's repertoire will include "Widerstehe doch der Sünde BWV 54" by Johann Sebastian Bach; "No Longer Fate Relentless Frown" from "Hercules," "Al lampo dell'armi" from "Giulio Cesare" and "O Lord whose mercies numberless" from "Saul," all by George Frideric Handel; "So in Love" from "Kiss Me Kate" and "Ev'ry Time We Say Goodbye," both from Cole Porter; as well as selections from Antonio Vivaldi, Franz Schubert, Riccardo Broschi and Henry Purcell.

A reviewer for the Miami Herald lauded Mobley for his "crystalline diction and pure, evenly produced tone." South Florida Classical Review cited his "elaborate and inventive ornamentation."

Mobley, a long-time member of the Grammy-nominated vocal ensemble Seraphic Fire, has traveled nationally and abroad to perform. He studied voice at the University of Florida with Jean Ronald LaFond, and at Florida State University with Roy Delp.

Tsutsumi said Mobley and she met at Florida State when she was working on her Ph.D. "We soon became friends when he told me that he was singing as a member of a barbershop quartet at Tokyo Disneyland, and talked to me in Japanese," she said.

"We enjoyed singing together in the Chamber Choir under the direction of Dr. Andre Thomas," Tsutsumi continued. "When I was working at the University of Florida in 2008, Reggie popped into the Men's Glee rehearsal to surprise me. He kindly sang a song for my students, and mesmerized them."

Tickets for countertenor Reginald Mobley are $15 ($5 for students) and are available at all SUNY Oswego box offices, online at tickets.oswego.edu or by calling 315-312-2141. Parking is included in the price of a ticket, and is available in the employee and commuter lots across Washington Boulevard from Sheldon Hall. Patrons with disabilities needing accommodations to attend should call 315-312-2141 in advance of the concert.

For more information on arts performances and presentations at SUNY Oswego, visit oswego.edu/arts.