Twenty-one years of music, singing and fun has been the legacy of the Vernon Community Singers, both for its members and its audiences.
This year the choir, under the direction of Terry Logan, presents December in Our Town, a collection of music to suit every taste.
From the hauntingly beautiful Ave Maria to the surprising Merry Christmas, Mozart, this concert truly has something for everyone.
Secular, sacred and silly songs will help people find their Christmas spirit as they join in the audience carols throughout the concert.
Special guests will be Trio 3tissimo, which consists of pianist Melanie Shum, violinist Alyshia Black and cellist Mark Casson, who have recently earned the Kelowna Chamber Music award as well as an honourable mention at the Provincial Festival for the Arts in Chilliwack.
The other special guest will be mezzo soprano Sidney Cummings, of the Logan Studio, who earned the Royal Conservatory of Music’s gold medal in her Grade 6 voice exam. She has also won many awards in local festivals, and will be the soloist in two of the choir’s numbers.
This is Logan’s first foray into the Vernon Community Singers’ repertoire of music, and says that going through the music library has been like being a kid in a candy store. She is especially enjoying the choir’s enthusiasm and positive response to her teaching.
In addition, this will be the first concert on the choir’s new risers, purchased this fall.
The old, handmade wooden risers were finally deemed to be too heavy for a small crew of workers to erect and take down. The new ones will be safer, lighter and much easier to handle.
The Vernon Community Singers is most definitely a community-minded choir, as it collects warm clothing for street people, donates scholarship money to local music students and financially supports students who wish to attend musical events. The choir also donates money to schools to purchase musical instruments and equipment.
The choir is a fixture at events such as Coldstream’s Remembrance Day ceremony and the Rotary Carol Festival, which is taking place this weekend at the Performing Arts Centre.
Its members have also sung at the downtown Vernon light-up, and each year, many of them travel to Silver Star to carol around the village, which always brings out a large number of skiers from around the world.
The Vernon Community Singers present December in Our Town Friday, Dec. 13 at 7 p.m. and Saturday, Dec. 14 at 2 p.m. at Trinity United Church. Tickets are $10, available from choir members and at the Schubert Centre.
