PULLMAN, Wash. – The annual holiday concert with symphony orchestra and vocal groups at Washington State University will be 3 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 7, in Bryan Hall.
Tickets will be available at the door beginning one hour before the performance. General admission is $10, $5 for students with ID and senior citizens and free for children 12 and under.
The Madrigal Chamber Singers, conducted by Lori Wiest and in costumes reminiscent of the Renaissance, will open with the contemporary composition, “Make We Joy Now in this Fest,” by Malcolm Archer. They’ll continue with “In the Bleak Mid-Winter,” by Gustav Holst; “Good King Wenceslas,” arranged by Sir John Stainer; “We Wish You a Merry Christmas;” and the premiere of a new arrangement of “First Night,” composed by Judith Halverson.
University Singers, conducted by Dean Luethi, will perform “Alleluia, Rejoice,” arranged by Washington composer J. Edmond Hughes, and a traditional spiritual of the season, “Mary Had a Baby,” by William Dawson.
Concert Choir, directed by Lori Wiest, will present “Gloria in excelsis Deo,” by Renaissance composer Thomas Weelkes; “’Twas in the Moon of Wintertime,” by Christopher Aspaas and a fun, tantalizing choral arrangement of “Jingle Bells,” by Mark Hayes based on the arrangement sung by Barbara Streisand.
The vocal groups will join the WSU Chamber Orchestra to perform Handel’s coronation anthem, “The King Shall Rejoice,” which was written for the coronation of King George II in 1727.
The Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Matthew Aubin, will perform the 4th movement of Beethoven’s “Symphony No. 5.”
All will join for the concluding selection, “A Christmas Festival,” by Leroy Anderson, featuring some of the season’s favorite carols.
Contact:
Lori Wiest, WSU director of choral activities, 509-335-6173 or 509-335-5647, lwiest@wsu.edu