Changes in the Christmas Concerts

December 22, 2009  
Filed under News

This year, the Ottawa High School music department has made some changes to the Christmas concerts.  The choir and concert band are performing separately. It has been a long tradition where singing and instrument playing graced an evening at the Ottawa Municipal Auditorium (OMA) together on the same night. This year the band performed with the Middle School on Tuesday and the choirs sang by themselves on Thursday at the OMA.

Courtney Williams, OHS band director, said that the reason the concert is changed is because she and Mark Paquette, the band director at Ottawa Middle School, wanted the bands to be one music department. They wanted the two schools to be more collaborative and cooporative.

“I liked the old way [tradition] better because I liked combining the Hallelujah Chorus with the band and inviting the community to sing along,” senior Dylan Moore said.    Though the performance for band was not like the old times it still turned out enjoyable and successful. The band played four songs after the three grades of the middle School finished their pieces. The selections the High School played varied between fanfares, Russian themes and classic Christmas tunes. After the concert, the band got many compliments from parents, teachers and other members of the community.

On Thursday at 7 p.m., the OHS choirs will be sang songs that they have been working on since mid fall. Like the band concert, this show brought in a large crowd because of the five different choirs, including Cytones, A capella Choir, two womens’ choirs and a men’s choir. Each performed a selection of Christmas themed songs such as Silent Night, Mary Did You Know and Carol of the Bells.

“I am looking forward to performing all of the holiday songs we have practiced for a few surprises that will happen in the concert,” choir director Tara Gray said.

The surprises were a few dances and skits by the choirs and a combined choir song where students sang out in the crowd.

Even though the traditional, combined Christmas concert did not happen this year, The OHS Band and Choirs gave good and enjoyable performances that kicked off the beginning of Christmas Break.

Catch the other concerts and performances!

Band

• Pre-Festival Concert- March 24
• Chamber Concert- March 29
• Spring Pops Concert- May 20

Choir

• Cytones caroling around town- Dec. 22
• Cytones Singing Valentines- Feb. 12

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Kali Hinman

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