Members of the Augusta Chorale have a lot to celebrate at their holiday concert Dec. 11.
It’s their first concert since 2019, and it’s the organization’s 40th anniversary season.
The repertoire features “the many moods of Christmas,” said Phyllis Anderson, the group’s artistic director.
The program includes pieces such as African Noel, portions of Handel’s The Messiah plus special arrangements of traditional Christmas favorites.
Accompanying the 40-member chorale is the Aiken Civic Orchestra. Also, members of Creative Impressions will join the group for a few songs.
“We felt we needed to make it special,” said Anderson.
The concert will begin at 4 p.m. Sunday at Paine College’s Gilbert Lambuth Chapel. Tickets are $20 in advance at the chorale’s website and $25 at the door
While the chorale has not had any in-person events in three years, the members have stayed in contact and kept the music going with regular rehearsals on Zoom, Anderson said.
And they’ve also maintained their connections with organizations such as the Georgia War Veterans Nursing Home, she said.
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“We’ve gone there twice a year for 15 years,” she said.
During the 2020 and 2021 holiday seasons, the chorale provided the nursing home with DVDs and created a card with photos of previous visits to show the veterans that members had not forgotten them even though they couldn’t sing for them in-person.
That partnership is one they are looking forward to reviving, she said.
The group has done other outreaches at schools and hospitals.
The Augusta Chorale is a multi-generational group with members ranging in age from their 30s into their 80s. The group rehearses on Mondays and “is always on the lookout for new members who want ‘to celebrate the beauty of song by presenting diverse and challenging chorale music which inspires our members and audiences,’” according to its website.
The chorale also has plans to resume its Martin Luther King celebration in 2023. The 35th anniversary concert with the Aiken Civic Orchestra will be at noon, Monday, Jan. 16, 2023, at Abilene Baptist Church, 3917 Washington Rd., Martinez.
Charmain Z. Brackett is the publisher of Augusta Good News. Subscribe to the newsletter here.
