TU Chorale performs ‘Idol’ finalist Jeremiah Lloyd Harmon’s ‘Almost Heaven’

By Rebecca Kirkman on May 3, 2019

After securing a spot in the top six of “American Idol” with his performance of “Who Wants to Live Forever” by Queen on April 27, Towson University voice performance student Jeremiah Lloyd Harmon will sing live in Los Angeles this Sunday, May 5, for a chance to continue in the competition another week.

Across the country, one music student’s idea has grown into a department-wide show of support for Harmon on TU's campus. On May 4, the Towson University Chorale will perform Harmon’s original song “Almost Heaven” during the TU Choirs spring concert, Voices of Nature, at 3 p.m. in the Center for the Arts’ Harold J. Kaplan Concert Hall.

The decision to include the song in the concert program came about quickly. After watching Harmon's “Idol” audition, Gino Abellanosa, a junior studying music education and part of the TU Chorale, was deeply moved.

“As a gay person who grew up in a church environment, the story behind Jeremiah’s song was a familiar one,” Abellanosa says. A line in the chorus that says “choirs singing in robes of white” inspired Abellanosa to begin working on a choir arrangement.

What started as a personal side project for Abellanosa quickly grew in scope when he shared his work with Assistant Professor and Director of Choral Activities Diana Sáez.

“I’d maybe gotten halfway through the arrangement before I realized how far Jeremiah has made it in the competition. It was at this point I realized I could use this arrangement to help show my support for him,” Abellanosa says.

“After finishing the arrangement and showing it to Diana Sáez, she was thrilled with the idea. We made significant progress the first day of looking through it, [and] she believed we would be able to perform it at our big concert. I was absolutely flabbergasted that this was even an option. I said ‘Yes,’ and here we are!"

Preparing the song for performance was a unique challenge since the chorale doesn't typically perform popular repertoire.

“Everyone’s put in a ton of work outside rehearsal with passion and vitality, and have made it clear they want to do their best,” Abellanosa says. “We all believe in Jeremiah and want him to succeed, and this shared feeling has brought us all together, unified with the goal of doing what we can to support him.”

It's also given Abellanosa the opportunity to have a song he's arranged performed by other people for the first time. “I wasn’t even expecting my teachers to take so quickly to the idea of performing it ... It was such a magical experience, hearing a room of talented musicians breathing life into the pages,” Abellanosa says. “I’m beyond moved to have the opportunity to work with everybody as an arranger, and so grateful for everyone at Towson who’s encouraged me and trusted in my ability as a musician. It makes me feel like I made the right choice to pursue music as a career.”

Watch Sunday, May 5 at 8 p.m. EST on ABC as Harmon and his five fellow competitors perform songs from the 1969 Woodstock music festival and inspirational “showstoppers” with guidance from former Idol contestant Lauren Daigle.

Voting opens at the start of the episode at AmericanIdol.com/vote, on the app and via text message. You can vote up to 10 times per platform. The top four competitors will be revealed at the end of the episode, with a potential “save” still available from the judges.

MORE INFORMATION

Studying Music at TU

Our programs in music education, performance, composition and jazz draw outstanding students who pursue successful careers in music. Learn more about the department of music.