“Strings Attached” at the Castle Museum of Saginaw County

Saginaw Choral Society presents the first concert of the season “Strings Attached” at the Castle Museum of Saginaw County.

It was Wednesday, September 9, and will be Friday, September 11, 2026, both at 6:30 pm. with the Saginaw Choral Society Chamber Choir performing.

“A Lark Ascending” by Ralph Vaughan Williams was a major part of the show. The piece was written in 1914 pre-World War I in Britian based on a George Meredith 122-line poem about an English Skylark climbing into the sky while singing out a continuous song. It’s a long song. It’s sort of hard to believe a bird could sing that long. Anna Tsukervanik was the violin soloist. She was excellent. Hearing her was worth the price of admission.

The ensemble included Tsukervanik, Katie Seigfried, violin, Alicia Valoti, viola, and Christopher Landis, cello. These would be the “strings” portion of the program.

Jeremiah Kraniak Artistic Director and conductor explained in his introduction, that the music he chose should “bathe us in lush harmonies and the sounds gather around you. It is meant to be contemplative and thoughtful”. The music is somewhat religious, with both a Christian and Jewish flavor.

A boutique concert is a shorter choral concert, with fewer singers. Saginaw Choral Society Chamber Choir consists of 18 voices. The show is sung under candlelight and was in the main hall of the Castle building. The acoustics add to the splendor of the voices and instruments. The low lighting makes it mysterious.

Part of the admission included a delicious menu of substantial hors devours. They were yummy and looked appetizing as well.

Even though the music could be quite serious, the program was short. You didn’t doze off and you could get home in time to watch some football. The program ended with a standing ovation. If you catch this review quickly enough, maybe, you can make it to the Friday’s show.