Choral Conductor Don Kendrick took the long way to Sacramento State - via Canada and Louisiana - but obviously found a home in the state capital, where he now celebrates his 25th anniversary teaching students to sing and bringing that music to the public.

To celebrate the silver milestone, the choirs will present “Handel and Haydn” at 8 p.m., Saturday, Nov. 14. And the annual “Procession of Carols” will welcome Choral Program alumni during its performances at 8 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 5; and 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 6. Both concerts are at Sacred Heart Church, 39^th and J Streets. Tickets are $10 general admission and $5 for students and seniors and are available at the University Ticket office, (916) 278-4323 or http://www.tickets.com/.

A native of Canada, Kendrick was working at Louisiana State University when he saw the job opening at Sacramento State. He had done doctoral work at Stanford and liked California, so he sent off a letter and a resume, and is still surprised to this day at the successful result. “One letter. One resume. I got the job,” he says.

One of the first things he did upon his arrival in 1985 was get the choirs off campus and into the Cathedral of the Blessed Sacrament for their performances, a tradition that continues today at Sacred Heart Church. The acoustics are magical, he says, but there was another motive behind the move. “It’s important that the University engage itself with the community around it.”

He also started international tours, sometimes mixing his student groups with members of Sacramento’s Choral Society, which he also directs, in addition to two church choirs. “Through touring with our choirs, we become international ambassadors on many levels,” Kendrick says.

His high school group toured Canada, and, while attending graduate school at the New England Conservatory in Boston, Kendrick toured Ireland, France and Italy. “Travelling to Europe with a choir and singing in these major cathedrals was a life-changing experience.”

Now he takes his own groups to those places, in addition to Milan, Prague and even China.

But singing isn’t the only thing Kendrick’s students learn. Because the tours are self-funded, a lot of fund-raising is involved, and the students get a background in marketing and public relations. “They’re learning how to take a product, package it, and make it viable to the community.”

Kendrick says he doesn’t have a clock ticking on a time for retirement, and is already making plans for himself and his choirs two years out. “There’s still so much music I am anxious to perform,” he says.

For more information on Sacramento State’s choirs program, visit http://www.csus.edu/music/choral/. For media assistance, call Sacramento State’s Public Affairs office at (916) 278-6156.