Marathons usually involve running or dancing, but tomorrow, the School of Music will hold a different type of marathon when it presents a 12-hour event titled "Bach Around the Clock."

From noon until midnight tomorrow, Esber Recital Hall will reverberate with the music of Johann Sebastian Bach. Tickets for the event are $4.50. This musical performance, the first of its kind at Penn State, will showcase students, faculty and ensembles. About 25 different student-affiliated musical groups and individuals will perform at the concert. The event benefits Penn State music students.

"The concert is intended to raise scholarship funds for the School of Music," James Lyon, professor of music in violin, said. The pieces being performed tomorrow will showcase Bach's range.

"Movements from a sacred cantata and Bach's Magnificat will allow the audience to experience the diversity of Bach's compositional style, from the fugue to the traditional four-part chorale," University Choir assistant conductor Matthew Swope said.

There will be a wide variety of performances Lyon said. The Symphonic Wind Ensemble and the Oriana Singers are two of many ensembles that will provide music throughout the day, he said.

"It's really exciting for the Oriana Singers to be a part of a performance like this," Oriana Singers member Amanda Bricker (sophomore-English) said. "Twelve hours of Bach is pretty intense, but it gives us a chance to expend our repertoire and to learn how to sing different genres with the tone they deserve."

Lyon said Bach's music was chosen because of his large number of published pieces. The many musical numbers allowed for the School of Music to be able to put on a marathon concert, he said.

At 3:30 p.m., the audience will also get the chance to meet in person an amateur J.S. Bach dressed in full costume.

"This segment should appeal to all ages of listeners," Lyon said. The audience will be able to interact with the composer while he teaches basic Bach dance steps.

"The event is a wonderfully unique opportunity for people to see and hear a variety of performers from the School of Music and from across the university," Swope said.