VSU Choirs Present Holiday Concert in the West Hall Rotunda Dec. 2

VALDOSTA — The Valdosta State University Women’s Choir, Men’s Choir, Chamber Singers, and Spotlighters will conduct their annual holiday concert in the West Hall Rotunda on Sunday, Dec. 2. Performances will begin at 3 p.m., 5 p.m., and 7 p.m.

“This is our favorite performance of the year,” said Dr. Paul A. Neal, a Department of Music associate professor and director of the Choral Studies Program. “The holidays provide such wonderful songs and carols, and the West Hall Rotunda provides the absolute best acoustic for the choirs.”

Conducted by Lynn Corbin, the VSU Women’s Choir will open the program with four selections, including “Deck the Halls,” a traditional English Carol, and “Up Above My Head,” a traditional gospel melody. Neal will then lead a newly formed Men’s Choir through four selections, including a traditional African carol, “African Noel,” and a 12^th century French carol, “Novum Gaudia.”

The Spotlighters, also directed by Neal, will perform a series of beloved holiday favorites —“Holly Jolly Christmas,” “This Christmas,” “Christmas Song,” “Dance of the Sugar-Plum Fairy,” and “We Three Kings” — that are sure to have the audience singing along. The Chamber Singers will be the last to perform, and after a selection of six pieces of music, the group will close the concert with “Silent Night.”

“When the Chamber Singers circle the audience in the final piece of the program, the hustle and bustle of the season literally stops for that moment. It is glorious,” Neal said.

Tickets for the annual holiday concert are $20 for adults and $10 for students. Neal noted that tickets normally sell out in advance, but this year some will be available for purchase at the door. Advance tickets may be purchased by calling the box office at (229) 333-5812 between the hours of 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. Monday and Wednesday, 12:30 p.m. and 2 p.m. Tuesday and Thursday, and 1 p.m. to 2 p.m. Friday.

Proceeds from Sunday’s performance will benefit the Chamber Singers’ 2014 tour of England.

“We’ve been invited to sing in a town called Stoke-On-Trent with the Ceramic City Choir,” Neal said. “I have guest conducted them before. We will also be singing in a small town called Worksop, where the church is over 900 years old. Concerts will also occur in Cambridge and London. I have contacts in England who have heard the VSU Chamber Singers and wanted them to come and share their music.”

Contact Dr. Paul A. Neal at (229) 333-5812 or paneal@valdosta.edu to learn more.

Women’s Choir: Jasmin Allen, soprano, Cochran; Mary Debra Brown, soprano, Valdosta; Sarah Carter-Sweatte, soprano, Savannah; Lynn Corbin, alto, Valdosta; Kameron Crutcher, soprano, Mableton; Dominique D’Heureux, soprano, Brooklyn, N.Y.; Sydney Files, soprano, Conyers; Lacie Hall, soprano, Thomasville; Creshenda Inman, soprano, Eastman; Rakeeta Laird, soprano, Chicago, Ill.; Brittany Loftin, alto, Waycross; Gwen Manning Larkin, alto, Valdosta; Danielle McNeil, alto, Columbus; Mesa Miller, soprano, Macon; Jessica Moore, soprano, Waldorf, Md.; Amelia Paul, soprano, Fitzgerald; Jackie Saccente, alto, Westhampton Beach, N.Y.; Anna Maria Schaer, soprano, Valdosta; Avery Schultz, soprano, Waverly Hall; Sara Seligosky, alto, San Pedro Sula, Honduras; Cassy Stowe, soprano, Clayton; Rebekah Strickland, alto, Dixie; Kiara Walker, alto, Cortland, N.Y., Felicity Watts, alto, Warner Robins

Men’s Choir: David Boyd, bass, Jackson, Miss.; Blake Bradley, tenor, Valdosta; Vicorie Brown, bass, Jonesboro; Mack Clemons, tenor, Columbus; David Fennell, bass, Valdosta; Michael Foster, bass, Snellville; De’Arius Howell, bass, Atlanta; Jerry Jennett, bass, Overland Park, Kan.; Nathaniel Jones, bass, Eastman; Rohan Jones, tenor, St. Johns, Antigua; Brian McMillan, bass, Moultrie; Joseph Morris, tenor, Moultrie; Dillan Parker, tenor, Woodstock; Stuart Price, bass, Leesburg; Garrett Randolph, tenor, Tacoma, Wash.; David Sanders, tenor, Madison, Fla.; Jared Scott, bass, Acworth; James Whelan, bass, Cumming; Brett Williams, bass, Valdosta; Issa Young, bass, Providence, R.I.

Spotlighters: Emily Bechiom, soprano, Waycross; Antoine Bray, tenor, Hamilton; Nathan Calvert, tenor, Valdosta; Chad Capers, bass, Warner Robins; Gabrielle Ford, alto, Tifton; Ashley Hamilton, alto, Kennesaw; Bria Harrison, soprano, Stockbridge; Lee Hillmon, bass, Tifton; Sam Schuler, bass, Peachtree City; Kiara Walker, alto, Cortland, N.Y.; Issa Young, bass, Albany

Chamber Singers: Nick Baggarley, tenor, Kingsland; Emily Bechiom, soprano, Waycross; Bryan Booth-Henderson, bass, Alpharetta; Antoine Bray, tenor, Hamilton; Jonathan Brown, bass, Moultrie; Anna Burke, alto, Thomasville; Nathan Calvert, tenor, Valdosta; Rachel Campbell, soprano, St. Marys; Chad Capers, bass, Warner Robins; Scarlett Eirish, alto, Tifton; Gabrielle Ford, alto, Tifton; Kamron Glover, tenor, Warner Robins; Aylesha Gurley, alto, Warner Robins; Ashley Hamilton, alto, Kennesaw; Bria Harrison, soprano, Stockbridge; Lee Hillmon, bass, Tifton; Mariah Hollis, soprano, Patterson; Esther Maloof, alto, St. Simons; Corey McNabb, tenor, Dahlonega; Corinne Noyd, soprano, Marietta; Terri Parker, soprano, Waycross; Allie Peterson, soprano, Acworth; Leah Powers, alto, Thomson; Stuart Price, bass, Leesburg; Lily Ramsey, soprano, Chattanooga, Tenn.; Sam Schuler, bass, Peachtree City; Nick Thompson, tenor, Brunswick; Carmen Turner, soprano, Baxley; Kiara Walker, alto, Cortland, N.Y.; Tyler Walker, tenor, Patterson; Erin Walsh, soprano, Ellerslie; Sean Wassmuth, bass, Lake Park; Ben Watson, bass, Peachtree City; Whitney Wiggins, alto, Sikeston, Mo.; Issa Young, bass, Albany