ESU’s University Choir Announces Holiday Concert on Facebook Live, December 13

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Posted by: admin on December 11, 2020, No Comments

East Stroudsburg University’s University Choir will share a recording of its holiday concert, “Non-Virtual Choir: A Musical Collage,” on Sunday, December 13, 2020 at 3 p.m. on ESU’s Facebook account (www.facebook.com/eaststroudsburguniversity). According to Brian Hodge, DMA, ESU’s musical ensembles director, the title of this year’s concert plays off the idea that ESU’s students, faculty and staff have been (largely) remote for the entire fall 2020 semester, except for this one day when the choir has come together, live, to present sounds from the winter season.

“It was an exhilarating day of live rehearsing and recording, and while the end product isn’t the perfection we normally strive to achieve, it was still great to safely come together and make music as one organization again. This experience truly served to highlight the how meaningful the simplest of things that once we took for granted are in today’s world,” Hodge said.
A presentation of choral music will be shared in two parts. The first half of the concert features a variety of music, You’ll Never Walk Alone (with Climb Every Mountain) by Rodgers and Hammerstein (arr. Mark Hayes), music from Alan Menken’s classic Little Shop of Horrors, set as a choral medley by Andy Beck, and “Dawn,” from ‘Bravo: a New Musical’ by Steven James Schmidt. The second half of the concert will feature music of the winter holiday season, including winter classics such as Leroy Anderson’s “Sleigh Ride”, “Carol of the Bells” (Leontovich/Wilhousky), “Patapan Fantasia” (arranged by Audrey Snyder) and a medley of traditional holiday songs by Gary Gilpin, incorporating “Here We Come A-Caroling,” “Jingle Bells,” “Deck the Hall,” “Jolly Old Saint Nicholas,” “Up on the Housetop,” and “We Wish You A Merry Christmas.”

For more information about the University’s musical ensembles, please contact Dr. Hodge at bhodge1@esu.edu.