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Arts & Entertainment

A Christmas Concert All About Love

Vernon Chorale Performs Holiday Fare, Sells its First CD

The Vernon Chorale, in its 31st season, will perform a holiday concert entitled “Love Came Down At Christmas,” taken from the name of the first selection by John Rutter, on Saturday, Dec. 10, at 7:30 p.m. at the First Congregational Church of Vernon. The first part of the evening will include pieces by Whitacre, Byrd, Tavener and Durufle. The second half will feature choruses from the Christmas portion of Handel's “Messiah” and the always popular audience singalong.

“Our program this year is a journey through the dual themes of love and Christmas,” Artistic Director Ehren Brown says. “The first half deals more with love, and the second half more with Christmas, though themes of both are found throughout.”

A new work called “The Tyger” by Texas composer Jason McCoy is paired with Tavener's setting of “The Lamb.” Both pieces are taken from William Blake poems. “Tyger,” finished last summer, was written for an eight-part a cappella choir. McCoy sent a version with computerized sounds imitating the sound of voices to Brown, who says, “I knew from the first listen that I had to program this piece on our December concert.”

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Before anything else, Brown programmed Eric Whitacre's “This Marriage” and developed the rest around it.

Brown, who is associate music director at Immanuel Congregational Church in Hartford and who sings in the a cappella ensemble Voce, notes that the first words sung in the concert will be "Love Came Down At Christmas," and the first half ends with "Rise up, follow me, I will lead you home."

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“In between we journey all over, but eventually come back to where we began, 'and know the place for the first time,' to steal from TS Eliot,” Brown says.

In the second half, a carol sing will follow the “Messiah” choruses, and the concert will end with the “Hallelujah” chorus.

For the first time, the Vernon Chorale will release a CD for sale, with the best of its holiday offerings from the last several December concerts. “A Vernon Chorale Christmas” includes works by Britten, Rutter, Ives, Byrd, Ledger, Grainger, Lauridsen and others.

The 50-voice chorale of trained musicians, music directors, educators, professionals and students draws members from throughout central and eastern Connecticut. Accompaniment is provided by Kathleen Bartkowski. Brown, who has sung with Concora and the Hartford Chorale and has directed the chorale and the Hartford Chorale Chamber Singers, holds undergraduate degrees in voice and music education and a Master of Music degree in choral conducting from the University of Connecticut.

Tickets to “Love Came Down At Christmas” are $15 for adults, $10 for students and seniors. The church is at 695 Hartford Turnpike (Route 30) in Vernon. For more information, visit the Vernon chorale Web site or follow them on Facebook and Twitter. The new CD, “A Vernon Chorale Christmas,” will be on sale for $15. A reception at the church will follow the performance.

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