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Evangel University to host National Honors Orchestra

Published on Jul 6, 2015 by Paul K. Logsdon

Preparing for 11-day European Tour
One local performance, free


SPRINGFIELD, MO — Evangel University will host a 27-piece National Fine Arts Honors Orchestra for a four-day Music Camp, July 5-9, under the direction of Dr. Larry Dissmore, professor of music at Evangel.

The Honors Orchestra will be preparing for an 11-day European tour to France, Germany and Belgium, following the camp.

A free local performance by the Honors Orchestra will be held on Wednesday, July 8, 6:30 p.m., at Evangel Temple, 2020 E. Battlefield, Springfield, Mo.

The Fine Arts Festival Honors Orchestra consists of 27 musicians —19 youth members (ages 14-18) and 8 adult chaperone musicians — and is sponsored by the Fine Arts Division of the American Assemblies of God Church.

“While the majority of the time at the music camp will be spent in musical preparation, the students will also be attending cultural orientation sessions,” said Dissmore, director of orchestral activities at Evangel University.

The group is also planning to attend a Springfield Cardinals game on July 6.

The AG Fine Arts experience

“The Fine Arts Honors Orchestra tour will be a trip of a lifetime,” said Dissmore. “They will visit and see places that will make both history and contemporary experience come alive.”

The National Fine Arts Festival is a program of the American Assemblies of God designed to encourage young Christian artists in the development of their talents and abilities in the performing, visual and language arts.

The youth members of the Fine Arts Honors Orchestra were selected by competitive audition from across the United States, with current members coming from 13 American states.

The Orchestra’s repertoire includes various sacred and gospel music arrangements for orchestra, and for voices with orchestra, as well as classical music selections.

For many years, the Assemblies of God has sponsored a National Orchestra as part of its annual National Fine Arts Festival. This is the first time the organization has sponsored a European tour by the orchestra.

“From past experience with the Evangel University Orchestra, I have seen students motivated by the music, inspired by the people and deepened in their faith,” said Dissmore.

An accomplished violinist and conductor, Dissmore has performed with professional orchestras in several American states.

He made his Carnegie Hall conducting debut with the Springfield (Missouri) Youth Symphony in 2007. He has previously completed four European tours with the Evangel University Concert Orchestra.


For additional information, please contact:

  • Dr. Larry Dissmore, Director, The Fine Arts Festival Honors Orchestra; dissmorel@evangel.edu
  • Cary Van Kampen, Director of Youth Operations, American Assemblies of God Youth Ministries; cvankampen@ag.org
  • Emily Orr, National Fine Arts Administrative Coordinator, American Assemblies of God Youth Ministries; eorr@ag.org