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Reciprocity
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Soli Deo Gloria Cantorum is the product of the creative imagination of Almeda and Jackson Berkey, performing artists of Mannheim Steamroller fame. For years the Berkeys envisioned a choral group versatile in many styles of music and comfortable in a variety of performance and recording settings. The Cantorum’s fulfillment of that vision has surprise even its own expectations. The inspiration that led to forming the thirty-two member group can be traced not only to the Berkey’s sense of devotion to music, but to the influence of the late Norman Luboff as well. Almeda, a singer, and Jackson, a tour pianist, met prior to a national tour with the famed Luboff choir. This combination of rare talents has lifted their musical accomplishments to heights which neither could have achieved individually. The three words, “Soli Deo Gloria”, mean “to God alone the glory” and were penned as a postscript by J.S. Bach to many of his manuscripts. “Cantorum” represents “singers”. Not all of the group’s music is of the sacred genre. Nor is it all classical. The versatility of the singers and the Berkey’s own musical backgrounds has allowed the group to perform a remarkably diverse array of music. The Cantorum repertoire encompasses sacred works, chamber music, folk songs, pop tunes and some original works composed by the Berkeys. SDG Records has produced seven CDs since the choir’s inception in 1991.
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SOLI
DEO GLORIA CANTORUM
