Weston Noble Celebration of Life set for May 13

DECORAH - A Celebration of Life service for Weston Noble is to take place at 1 p.m. Saturday, May 13, in the Center for Faith and Life Main Hall on the campus of Luther College, 700 College Drive in Decorah.

The service is to feature music by the Nordic Choir and Concert Band under the direction of Andrew Last, Jennaya Robison and Joan de Albuquerque. The service will be streamed live online at luther.edu.

Find up-to-date information about the Celebration of Life service at luther.edu/weston.

Noble graduated from Luther College in 1943 and joined the faculty in 1948, conducting the acclaimed Nordic Choir until 2005 and the Concert Band until 1973.

He died Dec. 21 at age 94.

Read more about Weston Noble here.

During his career, Nobel served as guest director for more than 900 all-state bands, orchestras, choirs and festivals across four continents. Resident conductor for the Pacific Summer Music Festival of Guam, he also conducted the Korea National Choir in Seoul in 2013, and at the International Schools Festival in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, in 2009.

He was a charter member of the American Choral Directors Association, and in 1994 the North Central Division honored him with a lifetime achievement award bearing his name. Among his other awards are five honorary doctoral degrees and St. Olav's Medal from King Harald V of Norway, for contributions to Norwegian-American relations.

A small man with a soft voice, Noble drove tanks in World War II and fought in the Battle of the Bulge and the Allied attack on Nazi Germany in 1945.

Born Nov. 30, 1922, in Riceville, north of Waterloo near the Minnesota border, his friends and colleagues said he liked big cars, driving fast, and had a great sense of humor. Mostly, they spoke of his zest for life, which flowed through his music and mentoring.

Luther graduate Andrew Last, who sang under Noble and is now an assistant professor of music at Luther, is to take the helm of Nordic Choir in the fall 2017 semester. He joined Luther's faculty in 2012. Among his prior teaching duties, Last served as choral director at Tipton and Cedar Rapids Xavier high schools.

l Comments: (319) 368-8508; diana.nollen@thegazette.com