Sacred Music Fest kicks off with free concert downtown

KALAMAZOO—The Michigan Festival of Sacred Music is giving a free concert Wednesday, Aug. 28, in downtown Kalamazoo. The music begins at 7:30 p.m. at First Baptist Church, 315 W. Michigan Ave., and includes the world premiere of "Assisi Impressions," the U.S. premiere of "Assisi Musings" for flute and cello, and pieces for solo cello by festival Executive Director Elizabeth Start and others.

Information also will be available on the Nov. 7-17 lineup for the rest of the festival, featuring special guest Paul Winter.

An informal travelogue in the church social hall will precede the concert at 6:30 p.m. Start will show pictures from her recent European trip, where she participated in an artist's exchange in Italy and attended the sacred music festival of Assisi.

About the Michigan Festival of Sacred Music

Retired Kalamazoo College Professor Dr. Wen Chao Chen, who died in 2012, and civic and religious leaders established the Michigan Festival of Sacred Music in 2001 as a nonprofit corporation supported by individual donations and numerous grants.

For more information, visit mfsm.us.