By Nicole Fitzgerald
A healthy dose of Christmas carols and beautiful voices will be gathered in song for the holidays at a number of festive concerts.
Myrtle Philip school students go nuts with Crazy Carols on Thursday, Dec. 14 at 1 and 6:30 p.m. at the Myrtle Philip Community School gymnasium.
“Crazy Carols has all traditional tunes, but the words are rewritten to highlight a child’s perspective on school holidays and the bustle surrounding the season,” said music teacher Veronica McPhee. “This is a funny show that moves quickly. It’s not a play, but rather a lineup of carols introduced with short poems.”
God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen becomes They Test You, Merry Gentlemen as students sing about the stress of quizzes and exams leading up to the very last day before Christmas break. Joy to the World becomes MY Shopping’s Done and O Christmas Tree transforms into O Christmas Treats — an ode to sugary treats anyone can relate to.
The revue of traditional carols with a wacky twist is followed by a traditional sing-a-long, getting everyone into the holiday spirit.
The carol spirit carries on the following night with the Whistler Children’s Chorus hosting their annual Christmas Concert Sing For Joy on Friday, Dec. 15 at 7 p.m. at Our Lady of the Mountains Church.
“The Chorus, the high school aged choristers, will be singing a beautiful arrangement of O Holy Night, and there will be a harp, jingle bells, drums, cowbells and all manner of joyous noisemakers,” said choir leader Janet Hamer.
Youth will lift their voices in joyous seasonal music for young and old with tradition songs such as Christmas is Coming and Christmas Day, as well as variations on favourite themes such as Jingle Bell Dash.
Admission is by donation to the Whistler Food Bank.
Christmas isn’t just for kids though.
The Whistler Singers host their annual Christmas Concert on Sunday, Dec. 17 at 7 p.m. at Our Lady of the Mountains Church.
“This program is made up of short selections, unlike last year when we did the longer classical Vivaldi’s Gloria,” said choir member Jane Reid. “It is nice the audience will get to sing three carols too, to put everyone into the holiday spirit.”
The adult choir will sing a selection of Christmas favourites then invite audiences to participate in a carol sing-along.
The choir has made the Whistler hills alive with the sound of music for more than 20 years. Under the leadership of Jeff Maskell for the past two years, the choir has expanded its repertoire to include everything from jazz to classical music.
The Christmas concert showcases an all-holiday program with standards such as Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas, the classical Panis Angelicus and well-known songs such as Holy Night.
The concert also highlights the talents of Jennifer Miller singing Do You Hear What I Hear and violinist Maddie Reid. The 16-year-old musician will play Greensleeves. Roz Steel of Pemberton and Kelly Mabey of Whistler will accompany the choir on piano.
Tickets are $10 for adults, $5 for children and $25 for a family. Partial proceeds benefit the Whistler Food Bank.
