‘Holidays at Hendricks’ heralds season on Dec. 6

Wednesday, November 18, 2009, By Kelly Homan Rodoski

“Holidays at Hendricks,” the annual Syracuse University holiday concert featuring the Hendricks Chapel Choir, Syracuse University Brass Ensemble (SUBE) and the Hendricks Chapel Handbell Ringers, will be held on Sunday, Dec. 6, in historic Hendricks Chapel.

The concert will begin in the chapel at 7:30 p.m. and is free and open to the public. Those attending are asked to bring a non-perishable food item; items collected will be donated to the Eastern Farm Workers Association.

Public parking is free and available on a first-come, first-served basis in the Quad 1 lot (accessible via Crouse Drive), the Quad 3 lot (accessible via Sims Drive, with entrance between Bowne Hall and Carnegie Library), Waverly lot (accessible via Crouse Avenue) and in the Irving Garage.

For the third year, through a unique collaboration between SU and WCNY, the 90-minute concert will be broadcast in late December by WCNY on both television and radio, and streamed on the Internet.

Broadcast times for WCNY-TV are Dec. 19 at 5:30 p.m., and Dec. 24 (Christmas Eve) at 9:30 p.m. WCNY-TV is found on Channel 24 or Time Warner Channel 11.

The radio broadcast and audio webstreaming will be Dec. 24 at 6 p.m., and Dec. 25 (Christmas Day) at 8 a.m. WCNY-FM (CLASSIC-FM) is found at 91.3 in Syracuse, 89.5 in Utica and 90.9 in Watertown, and the webstreaming can be heard at http://www.wcny.org.

During the concert, the three groups will perform both individually and in combination. The choir will be directed by John Warren, the brass ensemble by James Spencer and the handbell ringers by Jessica Bowerman and Emily Cirillo. University Organist Kola Owolabi will provide accompaniment.

This year’s program includes music by Anderson, Danner, Delius, Manz, Mozart and Victoria, as well as traditional carols and holiday offerings. A candle-lighting ceremony and the singing of “Silent Night” will take place near the conclusion of the program.

The Hendricks Chapel Choir is a select, voice-mixed choir of about 40 students that provides music for the Sunday morning interdenominational Protestant service at SU, as well as for various campus events. The choir presents annual holiday and spring concerts, and tours internationally every four years.

The SUBE, housed in SU’s College of Arts and Sciences, is composed of members of the SU faculty and staff, the SUNY Upstate Medical University faculty and staff, and accomplished musicians from surrounding communities. The SUBE presents about 18 performances per year. The ensemble’s repertoire includes music from all major musical periods and often features new compositions commissioned by nationally known composers.

The Hendricks Chapel Handbell Ringers is a group of students, faculty and staff from the SU community. The ensemble rings five octaves of Schulmerich handbells and four octaves of Schulmerich MelodyChimes. The Handbell Ringers perform at the Protestant Worship Services in the chapel throughout the academic year, as well as at other churches and venues throughout Central New York.

For more information on the concert, contact Hendricks Chapel at 443-2901.