As the semester is coming to a close, the Cabrini College Chorus has been preparing for its annual winter concert. The concert will be held this year on Dec. 4 at 3 p.m. in the Grace Hall Atrium.
The chorus has been rehearsing several Christmas classics and contemporary pieces to sing at the concert. They include, “Sleigh Ride,” “It’s a Wonderful Christmas,” “It’s Christmas Again,” “’Tis a Wonderful Thing,” “Have You Seen the Baby?” “Christmas Fanfare,” “Mary, Did You Know?” and “Festival Gloria.”
“It’s always hard to select music for the winter concert,” Dr. Adeline Bethany, professor of fine arts said. “With freshmen coming in, it’s hard to tell what level they are on, so I choose different pieces working with the unknown.”
Bethany keeps an eye out for new music that comes out, so she has a wide range of music to choose from and tries to select interesting and diversified music for the concert.
“I listen to a lot of new music and go to music publishers to stay up-to-date on new pieces,” Bethany said.
The “Hallelujah Chorus” is also a piece which will be sung at the concert. It is a tradition for the chorus to invite alumni to sing this piece along with current members of the chorus. Alumni who are in attendance during the concert will be asked to join the chorus on stage.
In addition to the pieces being sung by the choir, there will also be a sing-a-long session with the audience. This gives the audience a chance to sing some of their Christmas favorites including carols and popular music.
The Select Choir, the Chorale, will also be performing at the concert. They will be singing “For Unto Us,” “Ave Verum,” “Go Tell It on the Mountain,” and “Till the Spirit Moves in My Heart.”
Every year, an upper classman is selected to do a solo of “O Holy Night” after conducting auditions. This year, the piece will be sung by senior elementary and special education major, Nina Lanza.
“I was very surprised and shocked when I found out I got the solo,” Lanza said. “I practice the music at home all the time. This semester has been especially challenging because there are so many songs to work with.”
The chorus will be accepting new students for the spring semester. Students are eligible to take chorus as a credit or non-credit course. The chorus meets every Monday nights from 7:15 to 9:45 p.m. in the Widener Lecture Hall.
“Unfortunately, this year there aren’t as many male students and I encourage more men to join the choir,” Bethany said.
