DANBURY, CONN. — The Western Connecticut State University Concert Choir will join local choirs in performance with the New Haven Symphony Orchestra as part of NHSO’s School Night At The Symphony.

“Carmina Burana” will be at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday, Nov. 29, 2012, in the historic Woolsey Hall, 500 College Street, New Haven. Tickets prices range from $15 to $69. For more information, call (203) 837-8350 or visit www.newhavensymphony.org/page/event/carmina-burana-249.htm.

Students in the choir will have the opportunity to work with and learn from musical authorities including musical director William Boughton and featured artists Amanda Hall, Joshua Kohl and Michael Mayes.

Also participating in the program will be the Fairfield County Chorale and the Fairfield County Children’s Choir. The event is sponsored by Yale New Haven Hospital.

Carl Orff’s “Carmina Burana” is a famous piece composed and first performed in Germany that was inspired by the 24 poems found in the medieval collection “Carmina Burana” by Johan Andreas Schmeller. “O Fortuna” is the first poem of the Schmeller edition and forms a compositional frame for the work by being both the opening and closing movements. It has become a staple in popular culture as it used in numerous TV commercials and movies to set a dramatic mood with the classical world persistently programming and recording the work.

Western’s choir will perform Orff’s 20th-century masterpiece “O Fortuna!” as a featured selection from “Carmina Burana,” in addition to Engelbert Humperdinck’s “Hansel and Gretel Overture” and Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky’s “Excerpts from Swan Lake Suite.”

Winner of the Adventurous Programming Award in 2010, NHSO supports programs in the schools and community, presenting both classical repertoire and pops concerts and sharing its high musical standards with audiences throughout Connecticut and beyond. Through its Composer-in-Residence program, NHSO draws outstanding composers to mentor music students. In 2009, NHSO was featured in the Miramax film, “Everybody’s Fine,” starring Robert DeNiro. The orchestra also has been featured in many radio broadcasts and made the world-premiere recording of the complete five-movement version of Gustav Mahler’s first symphony. Among NHSO’s many triumphs was its selection in 2008 to participate in the League of American Orchestras’ highly competitive Institutional Vision Program.

Boughton, musical director of “Carmina Burana” and the NHSO, has a significant discography of internationally acclaimed recordings, which have reached the Top 10 in the U.S. charts. He has participated in high-profile arts programs with BBC Television and has guest-conducted orchestras around the world.

Western students will take part in a momentous occasion as they perform alongside musical greats and together display their vocal skills. Contact Laura Adam at LAdam@NewHavenSymphony.org with questions, or call (203) 865-0831, ext. 13.

Western Connecticut State University offers outstanding faculty in a range of quality academic programs. Our diverse university community provides students an enriching and supportive environment that takes advantage of the unique cultural offerings of Western Connecticut and New York. Our vision: To be an affordable public university with the characteristics of New England’s best small private universities.