Choir presents multi-faith concerts

The Crown of the Continent Choir, a Kalispell based community and congregational choir directed by Kevin Allen-Schmid, presents two multi-faith concerts this week.

The choir will perform “Pilgrim Spring” in St. Ignatius Sunday and in Kalispell Tuesday.

The concert in St. Ignatius is in the historic Catholic mission church at 3:30 p.m., and the Kalispell concert starts at 7:30 p.m. in the Flathead High School auditorium.

There is no admission charge for either performance, but an offering will be taken.

The program features the 70-voice choir and their select group, The Headwaters Ensemble, performing a variety of choral music from many faith traditions, including Buddhist, Jewish, Islamic, Christian, Hebrew and American Indian songs.

The program’s title comes from “Pilgrim Spring,” a choral anthem of the same name featuring violinist Clara Wieck.

Two Muslim-American men from Seattle, Islamic chant specialist Khaled Zaki and Irfan Khan, an Islamic scholar, will chant and comment on selections from the Quran as part of their multi-faith outreach work.

Both men are active in the interfaith community and have looked for opportunities to build bridges between Muslim and non-Muslim Americans, especially since 9/11.

“I lived in Malaysia for two years when I first started teaching,” Allen-Schmid said.

“It is a country where the majority of the people are Muslim. In my experience, the Muslims of Malaysia are a tolerant, open, peace-loving people. I heard the call to prayer from my bedroom window every morning there, and it thrills me to hear it now in America.

“With all the press generated from terrorist incidents, now including the Boston Marathon bombing, I’m afraid that people who have never met a Muslim have very little positive association with those people who comprise such a significant part of our own country (there are 10 million Muslims in America now) and in our world.

“We are hosting a Muslim exchange student in our house this year, Sima Mahamad, from Thailand. Meeting her has been an enlightening experience for students at Flathead High.”

Jennifer Stephens, the new choir director at Columbia Falls High School, will perform a Byzantine Orthodox chant with the choir, singing the same verse three times: first in English, then Greek, then Arabic.

“People may not realize that Arabic is a language used in Christian worship, and that all Arabic speakers are not Muslims. This Greek Orthodox chant in Arabic will segue nicely into the call to prayer in Arabic, and show that there are many cultural links between people that may be thought to be separate,” Stephens said.