The public is invited to enjoy a preview of The University of West Alabama’s upcoming Dec. 3 performance of Handel’s “Messiah” along with selections from holiday classics like “The Boar’s Head Carol,” “Of the Father’s Love Begotten,” and the “Twelve Days of Christmas.”
On Nov. 17, the UWA Concert Choir and Singers will present “A Christmas Choral Sampler” at 6 p.m. at the Demopolis High School Auditorium. This is the first of three UWA choral concerts this semester.
“Thanks to the Two Rivers Arts Council, Demopolis is our first stop for Christmas caroling,” said Dr. Christopher Shelt, the group’s conductor. “We want to get the people of Demopolis in the Christmas spirit with excellent Christmas vocal music. The Nov. 17 Demopolis concert is one of two prelude concerts leading up to the Dec. 3 evening performance of Handel’s ‘Messiah’ on the UWA Campus. The second prelude concert is earlier in the day on Dec. 3, a 2:30 p.m. family concert entitled ‘UWA Young People Sing at Christmas.’”
Alongside UWA faculty and student players, Dr. Shelt is bringing in players from the Mississippi Symphony to accompany both the concerts on Saturday Dec. 3. Two professional soloists, both trained by Dr. Shelt, will sing some of the “Messiah” solos along with UWA student soloists. “A Christmas Choral Sampler” will feature several preview performances of “Messiah” choruses along with other Christmas classics.
Within the next five years, Dr. Christopher Shelt, the new professor of vocal music at UWA, said he wants to build an unparalleled culture of vocal music-making at UWA, the very finest in its history. He wants to see UWA be a recognized vocal leader in the State of Alabama, bringing great vocal music of all kinds to the Black Belt Region, building a culture of great singing that impacts children and adults in the extended community.
This vision includes producing music majors in the vocal arts, at UWA, who will impact the world.
Shelt is a choral and orchestral conductor with three decades of experience. He is vocal pedagogy instructor and active student of vocal science with more than 18 years of university level experience, training studio teachers, music educators, and church musicians in state-of-the-art vocal methodologies. He is a clinician and consultant in vocal music, participating in many seminars in vocal pedagogy, both locally and internationally, at conservatories in Peru and Indonesia as well as in other parts of the world.
The performance of “A Christmas Choral Sampler” on Nov. 17 at DHS will begin at 6 p.m. Admission is $10. Students and TRAC members are free. Tickets can be purchased at the Demopolis Public Library or at the door.