Magical musical delights await you at the Mid-Texas Symphony’s 36th Concert Season presentation of “Out of This World – Heavenly Holidays” on December 15, at 4:00 p.m. at the Jackson Auditorium of Texas Lutheran University.
Come celebrate the holiday season with Music Director David Mairs, as he leads the Symphony and local, young, all-star musical talents such as Soprano Ashly Neumann, the Community Music Academy Youth Choir, the Hill Country Youth Chorus, and the Seguin Area Children’s Chorus in a seasonal performance to inspire and delight the senses.
The concert will open with the festive holiday overture A Christmas Festival by Leroy Anderson. Anderson arranged the piece featuring traditional carols from “Joy to the World” to “Jingle Bells” for the Boston Pops in 1950 and it has become a holiday concert favorite.
Featured soprano, Ashly Neumann, is the 2013 winner in the voice division of the 29th Annual Mid-Texas Symphony Young Artist Competition. Ms. Neumann has appeared with Opera of the Ozarks and at the prestigious Music Academy of the West 2013 where she was mentored by the legendary mezzo-soprano Marilyn Horne. “We are simply delighted to have this rising star back with us,” comments Music Director David Mairs.
The Texas Lutheran University/Mid Texas Symphony Community Music Academy Youth Choir, joined by the Hill Country Youth Chorus, will joyfully and reverently relate the Christmas story of Jesus’ birth with sweeping and lyrical renditions of the Donkey Carol and Nativity Carol by modern choral music composer, John Rutter. The CMA is a non-profit community music school that brings talented young musicians into the university environment, offers performance opportunities for students, and creates teaching lab experiences for university music students.
The second half of the concert opens with the “Carillon” from L’Arlésienne, Suite No. 1, by Georges Bizet. This movement of the suite features charming, “dancing” melodies and musical imitations of church bells. Of course, No holiday musical production would be complete without “The Magic Toy Shop.”
The holiday magic the continues with an imaginary musical Sleigh Ride. This light-hearted piece, composed by Leroy Anderson in the summer of 1948, has been named “the most popular piece of Christmas music in the USA.”
This “Heavenly Holidays” concert concludes with the angelic voices of the Seguin Area Children’s Chorus, singing Bring a Little Jingle and Mary’s Lullabye. The beautiful lullaby for children’s voices was written by Keith Robinson, a teacher at TLU and Jefferson Elementary in Seguin, and music director at the First United Methodist Church in Seguin. Music Director Mairs promises “one final, fun surprise” to end the concert.
You can purchase concert tickets ($5-$30) to “Heavenly Holidays” and tickets for the Annual Holiday Dinner ($38) by calling 830-372-8089 or order your tickets using the Mid-Texas Symphony’s on-line purchasing system at www.mtsymphony.org. Season tickets are still available. The Mid-Texas Symphony is on Facebook.
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