The Sacred Veil, presented by Umeri, the Drake University alumni choir

Umeri, the Drake University alumni choir conducted by Aimee Beckmann-Collier, will present The Sacred Veil by renowned composer Eric Whitacre on Saturday, June 3, 7:30 pm at Sheslow Auditorium.

At 6:00 pm a pre-concert talk will be given in Levitt Hall, Old Main by Dr. Richard Deming, medical director of the Richard Deming Cancer Center at MercyOne, and director of Above and Beyond Cancer, and Charles Anthony Silvestri, the librettist of The Sacred Veil. 

Following the pre-concert talk, audience members can view photos and quotations from the Above and Beyond Cancer book, published by the Drake Community Press, from 7:10 to 7:30 in Sheslow Auditorium.

Schedule

• 6-7:00 p.m. — Pre-Concert Talk with Dr. Richard Deming and Charles Anthony Silvestri, Levitt Hall, Old Main
• 7-7:30 p.m. — View photos and quotes from Above and Beyond Cancer, Sheslow Auditorium
• 7:30 p.m. — The Sacred Veil Concert, Sheslow Auditorium

Both the concert and pre-concert events are free of charge.
 

About The Sacred Veil

The Sacred Veil is a powerful 53-minute work, scored for choir, cello, and piano, that explores themes of love, loss, compassion, resilience, and finding meaning in the midst of suffering. Umeri will give the Iowa premiere of this work, which was published in 2020.

The texts of The Sacred Veil were written by Charles Anthony Silvestri, who has often collaborated with Eric Whitacre and other internationally-known composers to provide librettos for their works, and Julie Silvestri, Tony’s wife, who died of ovarian cancer at the age of 35. Julie’s words are excerpts from the blogs, journals, and emails she wrote both early in their marriage and during the time she was being treated for cancer.