A group of nearly 60 choir students from the College of St. Benedict and St. John's University have been rehearsing for a big gig next month.

They're playing one of the biggest stages in the world -- Carnegie Hall in New York City -- on Sunday, April 6.

And as the old joke goes -- "How do you get to Carnegie Hall?"

"Practice, practice, practice."

And that's exactly what members of the CSB and SJU Chamber Choir, SJU Men's Chorus and CSB Women's Choir have been doing for the past few months. They're getting ready to perform Antonio Vivaldi’s Magnificat, RV 610 and J.S. Bach’s Sanctus in C major, BWC 237 -- challenging classical works -- on one of the world's biggest stages.

And they'll be backed by the celebrated New England Symphonic Ensemble.

CSB+SJU associate professor of music Dr. Bradley Miller will guest conduct the portion of the program featuring his schools' choir members.

They'll be joined during the Carnegie Hall performance by other performers from across the country, including: Cal Poly Polyphonics, the First United Methodist Church Sanctuary Choir from Appleton, Wisconsin, the Jouyssance Early Music Ensemble from Los Angeles, the St. Philip the Apostle Church Choir from Pasadena, California and the Paso Robles High School Choir (Forte) from Paso Robles, California.

Miller calls the chance to play Carnegie Hall "a bucket-list opportunity."

“For me and our singers to be able to make music at such a notable venue will be a phenomenal experience. This is the first time any CSB+SJU ensembles have had the chance to do this. It increases the visibility of our program and adds a very impressive performance to our resume.”

If you'd like to get a preview of the prestigious Carnegie Hall gig, the Chamber Choir will perform Friday, March 28th in the Great Hall at St. John's University.

The 7:30 p.m. show is free to students, faculty and staff. Members of the general public can buy tickets for $13 ($10 for those 60-and-over) on the CSB and SJU Fine Arts Programming website and at the Benedicta Arts Center box office at CSB.

The group leaves for New York on April 3rd and returns to Minnesota on the 7th.