Current Release: September 11th, 2007 | Vol. XXIV Iss. 10

Spirits lift for annual Christmas event

Eric Miller

ermiller@vwc.edu

Are exams keeping you from feeling the holiday spirit? Are you looking for a way to celebrate Christmas a little early this year? You could rush to the overcrowded mall, dodge the traffic, the people, the aisle displays, and undertake the task of Christmas shopping, but why not try “A Wesleyan Christmas,” VWC’s annual concert filled with carols and melodies that will get anyone into the spirit. The concert premieres Dec. 3 at 7:30 p.m. in the Hofheimer Theater and will be repeated on Dec. 4 at the same time. It features the voices of the College Choir and Wesleyan Singers, under the direction of Dr. David Clayton, professor of music. VWC vocal instructor Billye Brown Youmans will sing “O Holy Night” and the Virginia Handbell Consort, under the direction of Agnes French, will accompany.

In the past, the concert has been a traditional evening of lessons and readings, but this year the form will differ slightly. “I thought it would be great for the students to have the honor of premiering a piece, and I think they’re looking forward to it,” said Sandra Billy, director of the Center for Sacred Music.

With great excitement, the choir will present the anthem “Come, Thou Long Expected Jesus,” a traditional church hymn written in poetic form by Charles Wesley in 1744. The anthem itself, which varies slightly from the hymn, was composed by Hal Hopson, a Texan composer.

“We explored a number of Wesley’s texts,” explained Billy regarding the choice in song, “The melody is lovely and mesmerizing.”

“The hymn has two stanzas, but Hopson decided to use only a portion for this anthem,” said Clayton. Besides the obvious fact that our college’s name is derived from Wesley and the Wesleyan church, some may be wondering, why a song from Charles himself? The answer is that this year marks the 300th anniversary of his birth, and the college been celebrating the entire year.

A continuation of the Center’s Symposium “Our Wesleyan Tradition,” the commissioned anthem is a capstone for the fall semester. “As far as I know this is the first anthem the college choir has ever premiered”.

Senior Terry Heinz was tasked with copying the anthem for the music department. He entered Hopson’s handwritten piece, note by note, into a music writing computer program titled ‘Finale.’ The symposium will continue in the spring with three more events, so be sure to check out the events calendar. As for this month’s event, be sure to make reservations because the seats may sell out quickly.

With traditional carols such as “Go Tell It on the Mountain” and “Angels We Have Heard on High”, a few tongue in cheek parodies of other favorites, and selections from Tchaikovsky’s “Nutcracker Sweet,” this is a holiday celebration you won’t want to miss.