Holiday WSU Choral Concert @ St. Joseph's Church (Ogden: Dec 5)

Heavenly Holiday Music
Who: Weber State University Department of Performing Arts
What: Combined WSU Choirs and Weber State Symphony Orchestra Concert
When: Sunday, 5 December 2010, 5:30 p.m. and 8:00 p.m.
Where: St. Joseph’s Church, 24th and Adams Avenue, Ogden

The annual holiday concert by the Weber State University Choirs and Symphony Orchestra will be presented Sunday, December 5, at St. Joseph’s Church, 24th and Adams in Ogden, Utah. This annual holiday concert is so popular, it is presented twice; at 5:30 and again at 8:00. Tickets are $7 for adults; $6 for students, seniors and those with military I.D or $25 for a family up to 6 members. Children six years and older are welcome to attend. Come early as both concerts usually play to sold out audiences. If you arrive early for the 5:30 concert - and the sky is clear - you’ll get the pleasure of seeing the evening sun playing through the beautiful stained glass windows of the old red sandstone church.

A feature of this year’s concert is the combined choirs and orchestra performing WSU Choral Music Director, Dr. Mark Henderson’s “Magnificat” for Choir and Orchestra; as well as the premier of another new work of Henderson’s called “Christmas at Sea” about a Christmas Eve spent under the moon on a cloudless night at sea. The WSU Flute Quintet will be the Guest Performers. The Weber State Symphonoy Orchestra will perform Leroy Anderson’s “A Christmas Festival.”

This program will also include early medieval, traditional and popular holiday music. The program will conclude with a German lesson as the audience is taught the German words to “Silent Night/Stille Nacht,” so they can join in on the chorus as the choirs sing all the verses. Hundreds of voices fill the sanctuary with beautiful harmony and few can leave the program without the feeling of peace this season is hoped to bring.
Dr. Mark Henderson conducts the WSU Chamber Choir and WSU Concert Choir. Dr. Michael Palumbo conducts the WSU Orchestra. The WSU Concert Choir and Weber State Symphony Orchestra will combine musicians on “Magnificat” and the individual groups will perform selections from their holiday repertoires. A tradition of many years will be “Still, Still, Still,” which has the Chamber singers spread throughout the church while they perform.

This annual concert reflects the pageantry of another age. Angelic voices begin the concert from the choir loft at the back of the church. The disembodied voices really do seem to be coming directly from a heavenly choir. During the concert, the singers move about the sanctuary in a stately manner, in a choreography of grand ceremony. At times the individual singers are spread throughout the space, giving the audience the experience of being in the middle of the celebratory sound. The sights and sounds of the holiday provided by this concert are a thrilling way to start your holiday season. Bring the family and friends and share the true holiday spirit!

Tickets for the performance are available at the Dee Events Center ticket office, 1-800-WSU-TIKS. Tickets, if still available, can also be purchased at the door one hour before the performances.

For more information about the concert contact Dr. Mark Henderson, 626-6448 (mhenderson@weber.edu) or Dr. Michael Palumbo, 626-6991 (mpalumbo@weber.edu).