Bisonette Glee Club Announces Spring 2017 Performances

The 60-member Bisonette Glee Club, the women’s glee club from Oklahoma Baptist University, will perform at several locations on a short tour through Oklahoma in March and April. The group is under the direction of Dr. James Vernon, professor of music.

The group’s first performance is Sunday, March 26, at First Baptist Church of Cheyenne during the 10:50 a.m. worship service. The church is located at 608 E. Broadway in Cheyenne. More information about the church may be found at www.fbccheyenne.com. That evening, the Bisonettes will perform at 6 p.m. at First Baptist Church of Okarche, located at 101 E. Stroh Avenue. The church’s website is www.okarchebaptist.com.

On Sunday, April 9, the Bisonettes will perform during the 11 a.m. worship service at Fairview Baptist Church in Earlsboro. The church is located at 48502 Highway 35. Information about this church may be found at www.fvbearlsboro.com.

Two concerts on April 23 close the traveling season for the Bisonettes. The group will sing during the 8:30 a.m. and 11 a.m. services at First Baptist Church of Ardmore, located at 221 1st Avenue SW. More information about this church may be found at www.fbcardmore.org. The group will then travel north to perform a 6 p.m. concert at First Baptist Church of Pauls Valley, located at 213 N. Ash. The church’s website is fbcpv.wordpress.com.

The Bisonettes will then celebrate 63 years of singing at their OBU campus spring concert, Saturday May 6, at 7:30 p.m. in Yarborough Auditorium in Raley Chapel. 

All performances are free and open to the public.

The Bisonettes were founded in 1954 by Warren M. Angell, former dean of the College of Fine Arts. Membership in the group is by annual audition. This year’s membership includes students from Oklahoma, Texas, Arkansas, Alaska, Arizona, Colorado, Missouri, Nevada, West Virginia, Haiti and Spain. While music majors comprise a large number of the singers, the group is represented by a wide range of non-music majors, including nursing, art, graphic design, biblical languages, psychology, biology and English.

The group performs at a wide range of campus events and off-campus concerts, including an annual tour of churches and schools. The Bisonettes’ repertoire represents a wide range of compositional styles in both sacred and secular musical formats, and showcases choral standards, traditional numbers and contemporary compositions.

Serving in his 7th year as musical director, the Bisonette Glee Club is conducted by Dr. James Vernon, professor of music.  For 27 years, Vernon has served OBU as an instructor in music theory, composition, and fine arts, and for 10 years served as chair of the Division of Music. His compositions have been performed throughout the United States and in Europe.   His first opera, A Porcelain Doll, was premiered on the OBU campus earlier this month.