The Choir of the West, Pacific Lutheran University’s premier choral ensemble, embarks on a tour of the Southwest this January, including a stop in Sun City.

The choir will perform at 6:30 p.m. Jan. 23 in American Lutheran Church, 17200 N. Del Webb Blvd. Choir of the West is made up of undergraduate students from a variety of academic disciplines.

Choir members are chosen through a rigorous audition process and perform several concerts each year, including shared programs with other PLU ensembles and the annual Christmas concert series.

Their 2015 Christmas Concert, “A Christmas Invitation,” was broadcast nationwide in more than 60 markets on PBS during the 2016 holiday season.

The choir was founded in 1926, and was the third Lutheran college choir to tour extensively throughout the United States.

The Choir of the West has toured Europe, Scandinavia, Japan and China, and has been selected to appear at several regional and national conferences of the National Association for Music Education and the American Choral Directors Association.

During summer 2011, Choir of the West competed among choirs from 47 nations at the prestigious Harmonie Festival in Lindenholzhausen, Germany, winning two gold certificates and one silver.

In 2015, the choir competed in the Anton Bruckner Choir Competition, held in Linz, Austria. The choir won both the mixed choir and sacred music categories, and was awarded the Anton Bruckner Prize as the most outstanding ensemble in the competition.

For information about the Choir of the West, detailed tour program offerings, PLU’s music program and to order recordings, visit the choir’s website at www.plu.edu/choir.

Editor’s note: Mandi LeCompte is the outreach coordinator for the Choir of the West.