The Northwest Women’s Chorale will usher in the holiday season with performances in Sequim and Port Angeles.
The first performance will be at 7 tonight at Dungeness Valley Lutheran Church, 925 N. Sequim Ave., Sequim.
The second performance will be at 7 p.m. Monday at Holy Trinity Lutheran Church, 301 Lopez Ave., Port Angeles.
Admission to both is a suggested donation of $15.
During the concerts, the group — under the direction of Joy Lingerfelt in collaboration with pianist Kristin Quigley Brye — will present Gospel and holiday selections, according to a news release.
In creating the repertoire for the concert, Lingerfelt said she contemplated the words of a selection by Felix Mendelssohn, “How Lovely Are the Messengers that Preach the Gospel of Peace.”
She said she began thinking about shepherds on a hillside who heard a message of peace that came from a host of angels.
With growing conflict in the nation and world, Lingerfelt said, this message of peace from the beauty of the music and the singers is of great importance.
Along with a singalong and a piano piece for four hands played by Lingerfelt and Brye, the concert will include music from across the globe such as “In Heaven Above,” a Norse folk tune that uses kulning — the Scandinavian tradition of communicating across the hills and valleys to bring livestock down from the high mountain passes.
Other selections include “Beata es, virgo Maria” from Spain and “The Holly” and “Ivy” from the United Kingdom.
The featured title song, “Good People, All,” will feature soloist Judy Moilanen. This song also originates in the United Kingdom, Lingerfelt said, adding it sounds “like the wind blowing against the landscape.”
Solo vocalist Vicki Helwick will sing “O Holy Night” and will conclude with “Cradle Hymn,” a paraphrased version of “Away in a Manger.”
Lingerfelt is the founding director of NorthWest Women’s Chorale and has lived on the Olympic Peninsula since 2002.
She holds a Master of Music from Southern Illinois University and a Bachelor of Music from Pacific Lutheran University. She currently serves as deacon at Holy Trinity Lutheran Church.
Brye holds degrees in horn and collaborative piano and vocal coaching from Pacific Lutheran University and North Carolina School of the Arts.
Brye is an adjunct professor of music at Peninsula College, a collaborative pianist with NorthWest Women’s Chorale, director of music at First United Methodist Church of Port Angeles and maintains a busy private studio.
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Features Editor Chris McDaniel can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 56650, or at cmcdaniel@peninsuladailynews.com.
