The talented folk from Chorella Community Choir are hoping to kick off the festive season with style, when they present their annual Christmas Concert at St John of God Hospital Chapel on Sunday, November 25.
The choir celebrated its 15th birthday this year and is still going strong.
Chorella is primarily an acapella choir, though it occasionally utilises an instrumental backing to enhance some of the repertoire.
The Christmas concert will include a mix of music from around the world, some pieces dating back as far as the 13th century.
Some of the songs will even be sung in their original language – German, Latin, Italian, French and Spanish – while others have been translated into English.
The group will also be singing some of its favourites, including Baba Waiar, a traditional song from the Torres Strait Islands.
“The concert will coincide with the release of our first CD, a recording of a selection of songs from our repertoire,” said Chorella’s Josephine Blue.
“We have recorded the songs over several sessions at St Peters Anglican Church in Richmond, which provided a great acoustic.
“The CD is titled Petals On The Grass, the name chosen from a song featured on the CD, written and composed by one of our members, Marjorie Doran, of North Richmond. The song expresses our ‘love of music, the tie that binds us, underneath the Southern stars’, and songs ‘float like petals on the grass’.
“Our musical director, Anthony Linden Jones, arranged the music with four part harmony, and solo segments that create a beautiful, rich sound. A grant from Bendigo Bank made it possible for use to produce the CD.”
The Christmas concert will include a performance of harp music by Pauline Vizzard of Bowen Mountain.
An afternoon tea will be served during the interval and a raffle will be drawn with prizes donated from a number of local businesses.
Songs included in the concert include: Alle Psallite (13th century Latin), Mary Had A Baby, Olwen (Welsh carol translated into English), Riu Riu Chiu (Spanish), Rocking Nativity (Czech translated into English), Away In A Manger, Hark The Herald Angels Sing and many more.
The concert will start at 2pm and tickets cost $20 for adults and $15 for concessions.
For tickets call Martha on 4572 1778 or Sue on 4572 1140. They will also be available at the door.
