If you've been meaning to hear the Augsburg Centennial Singers, this Sunday is your chance in Bloomington, and nearly your last chance anywhere. The male chorus is disbanding at the end of the year after more than 33 years. It performs at 3 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 25, at Oak Grove Presbyterian Church, 2200 W. Old Shakopee Road. The concert is scheduled to wrap up around 4:30 p.m.
The program is the kind of music these singers have built a following on: familiar hymns, spirituals, songs of praise and gospel selections. There's no ticket. Donations will be accepted at the door.
The choir's history goes back much further than 33 years. Per the chorus, Augsburg's tradition of touring gospel quartets dates to the 1880s. The Centennial Singers formed in 1992, when former quartet members got back together at Augsburg Homecoming to mark 100 years since an 1895 quartet tour of Norway. More than 170 men have sung with the group since then, and some current members are in their 70s, 80s and 90s. The choir says its mission is to present concerts that personalize a Christian faith and to give male singers a place for fellowship.
The Bloomington stop is the third of 4 concerts on the fall 2026 farewell schedule. The tour opened Sept. 20 at Westwood Lutheran Church in St. Louis Park and went to Our Saviour's Lutheran Church in Hastings on Oct. 11. The final performance is set for 3 p.m. Nov. 8 at First Lutheran Church, 1555 40th Ave. NE, in Columbia Heights. All the details are on the chorus's concert schedule page.
Why stop now? The answer is age and numbers. Member David Weisser said the choir used to have 55 or 60 singers and is now down to 35 or 40. He's in his mid-70s and called himself "one of the youngest ones in the choir." He said the group would rather go out while it's still good: "We're still sounding good, but we need to leave on a high note."
That makes Sunday a good afternoon to catch a group of veteran voices on a high note. Come early if you want a good pew.
