Audience Will Be Invited To Participate During Festive Winter Concert

FAYETTEVILLE - The stage will be decked with poinsettias and the audience will be invited to sing along to traditional seasonal carols during the annual Winter Concert by the University of Arkansas Schola Cantorum and Concert Choir.

The concert, which begins at 8 p.m., Dec. 12, at the Walton Arts Center, will feature the UA brass quintet as well as a special guest appearance by Fayetteville High School's A Cappella Choir, directed by Bill Burrows. David Saladino will conduct the Schola in such seasonal favorites as "Angels We Have Heard on High," "Away in a Manger," and "The First Noel."

The Concert Choir, conducted by Eddie Jones, will present the Christmas spiritual "Hail Mary" by American composer William L. Dawson and four favorite choruses from Messiah, ending with the popular "Hallelujah Chorus."

The audience will be invited to join the Choir on stage to sing the Messiah choruses. The Schola will offer the haunting Austrian carol "Still, Still, Still," arranged by Norman Luboff; "What Sweeter Music," by American composer Gordon Binkerd; and the Christmas spiritual "Mary Had a Baby," set by William L. Dawson.

"This concert, our most festive of the year, always attracts a large crowd," said David Saladino, conductor of the Schola. "This will be a wonderful evening of choral music.

"This year we're adding to the festivities by lining the Baum Walker stage at the Walton Arts Center with fresh poinsettias. Audience members will be able to buy these plants, which will come directly from the greenhouse, and either pick them up at the Department of Music or take them home immediately after the concert."

Tickets are $5 for the general public, $3 for senior citizens and $1 for students. For more information or to reserve a plant, call 575-4701 or 575-5763. The Department will be offering 62 small and 62 large poinsettias for sale.

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