With the theme “Christmas Past and Christmas Present,” the Sippican Choral Society kicks the holiday season into high gear with concerts on December 6 and 8.
The annual concert has long been the unofficial start of the Christmas season, said Mike Chaplain, president of the Society. “We have singers from towns all up and down the South Coast,” Chaplain added, “so people from all over come to hear their neighbors perform.” Towns represented in the chorus include Dartmouth, Taunton, Westport, Wareham, Acushnet, New Bedford, Plymouth, Middleboro, Fairhaven, and of course the tri-town of Marion, Rochester, and Mattapoisett.
This year’s concert reaches all the way back to Ephrem of Syria in the 4th Century for some of its lyrics, said Chaplain. It also meanders through traditional French carols as interpreted by the classical composer Marc-Antoine Charpentier, and a modern Latin Mass by Francis Poulenc. Familiar favorites such as “Past Three a Clock” and “Carol of the Birds” will mix in with contemporary re-imaginings of English noels, and as always, the audience will be invited to sing along with some of the selections.
The first show will be on Friday, December 6 at 8:00 pm in the north end of New Bedford, at the Saint Joseph and Saint Therese Parish, 51 Duncan St. The second performance will be Sunday, December 8 at 4:00 pm in Wickenden Chapel, Tabor Academy Campus, 86 Spring St., Marion.
Tickets are $15 adults, $5 students. Kids six years old and younger can attend free.
Tickets are available at the Marion General Store, The Symphony Shop in Dartmouth, Keepers Kloset in Mattapoisett, and The Euro Shop in Fairhaven. All members of the chorus have tickets for sale as well.
For further information, visit the Sippican Choral Society website.