The legacy of Lake Michigan College’s music department to be celebrated during April 15 concert

Event: Legacy & Song: Lake Michigan College Music Department Celebration Concert
When: Wednesday, April 15, 2026
Where: Lake Michigan College Mendel Center Jenkins Theatre
              2755 E. Napier Avenue, Benton Harbor, MI 49022
Tickets: Free general admission, tickets not required

BENTON HARBOR, Mich. – Lake Michigan College’s Visual & Performing Arts Department invites the community to celebrate the rich legacy of its music program during the Legacy & Song concert, 7 p.m., April 15, at the LMC Mendel Center Jenkins Theatre. The evening reunites former music directors and alumni for an evening of choral and instrumental music spanning decades of LMC artistry.

Guest conductors will be former LMC music director Dan Henrickson and current LMC Dean of Arts & Sciences Kristopher Zook, who served as Chair of the College’s Visual & Performing Arts Department from 2019-2022. They join current LMC choral director and LMC music alumnus Rebecca Derbas-Selvidge in leading the evening’s ensembles.

Henrickson will conduct the Alumni Choir in David Dickau’s “If Music Be the Food of Love” and Morten Lauridsen’s ethereal “Dirait-on.” Zook leads the Concert Choir in Mozart’s “Kyrie eleison” and the Vocal Chamber in Mark Hayes’ “One World.” Derbas-Selvidge directs the Alumni Choir in Rollo Dilworth’s spirited “Walk in Jerusalem” and guides the Vocal Chamber through a diverse program that includes Jim Papoulis’ rhythmically charged “Oye” and Harry Somers’ folk-inspired “Feller From Fortune.”

The program features the LMC Vocal Chamber, Vox LMC, LMC Concert Choir, and the Alumni Choir assembled especially for this occasion, alongside faculty instrumental soloists. Highlights include Aaron Copland’s rousing “Stomp Your Foot” from The Tender Land, a Vivaldi double trumpet concerto performed by LMC faculty Danny Lopez and student Luis Sanchez, and Vox LMC’s soulful rendition of “Hallelujah, I Love Him So” with live rhythm section. 

Stephen Paulus’s beloved “The Road Home” will feature LMC alumna Shay Beeson as soloist. Additional performers featured throughout the program will be students Deyton Lee, Markus White, and Zechariah Childs, alumnus Brandon Yenchus, and collaborative pianist Alexandra Lee.

Following the concert, the audience is invited to join the guest conductors, students, and alum for a reception in the Mendel Center North Lobby.

Admission is free and tickets are not required.

About the Lake Michigan College Visual & Performing Arts Department  
The Visual & Performing Arts Department enables students to reach new levels of excellence through classroom instruction and public performance. Many programs, including instrumental and vocal music, theatre, and dance, are based in the Lake Michigan College Mendel Center, the only performing arts center of its kind in Southwest Michigan. Here, LMC students have opportunities to study the performing arts in a venue that attracts thousands of patrons annually. Programs including drawing, painting, and graphic design allow students to explore the possibilities in the visual arts.

Auditions are held for select ensembles that perform on the same stages as world-renowned touring acts. Students in any major also have opportunities to audition for Broadway musicals and plays and join two different vocal ensembles, string and wind ensembles, a pop-rock ensemble, and a jazz band. One of only two colleges in Michigan to carry the prestigious All-Steinway designation, LMC has a team of highly qualified faculty who bring real-world expertise to the classroom. 

For more information about the Visual and Performing Arts department and performances, visit lakemichigancollege.edu/arts, email mmccaffrey@lakemichigancollege.edu, or call 269-927-8876.

About the Lake Michigan College Mendel Center
The Lake Michigan College Mendel Center is 30 minutes from Niles and 40 minutes from Kalamazoo and South Bend. It is located on the Lake Michigan College campus at 2755 E. Napier Avenue, Benton Harbor, Michigan, one mile east of I-94 (Exit 30) and one mile west of the US 31 Bypass (Exit 24). Its GPS mapping address is 1100 Yore Avenue, Benton Harbor, MI.