The College of Southern Maryland Chamber Singers will perform works by Aaron Copeland, Andrew Dias III and Eric Whitacre at Keuka College Tuesday, April 8.

Sponsored by Campus Ministries, the concert will begin at 7 p.m. in Norton Chapel and is free and open to the public.

The 20-member group is conducted by Professor of Music and Music Director John Maerhofer, who also serves as chair of the Division of Fine Arts and Humanities, director of choral activities, and conductor of the concert choir.

For the past 11 years, the group has performed at such venues as the Washington National Cathedral, the United States Naval Academy, and the Baltimore Cathedral of the Incarnation as well as regional churches and community centers, throughout southern Maryland and the Washington metropolitan region.

In 2006, the ensemble traveled to Germany and Austria for a two-week concert tour.

The group has produced more than a dozen choral CDs and two DVDs. Its latest work is a double-length CD to commemorate the 50^th anniversary of the College of Southern Maryland.

A graduate of Oneida High School, Maerhofer earned a bachelor’s degree from Ithaca College, a master’s degree from Manhattan School of Music, and a Ph.D. from St. John’s University.

Minister of music at Peace Lutheran Church in Waldorf, Md., Maerhofer served four years on the Music Evaluation Panel of the Maryland State Arts Council, and served a two-year term on the Fine Arts Advisory Panel of the Maryland State Department of Education.

Maerhofer and his wife, Amy, own an 1860 Victorian bed and breakfast in Clifton Springs.

-- Gretchen Parsells