by Audrey Anderson
Hometown Weekly Reporter
The talented Senior Moments Chorus presented a warm and wonderful Holiday Concert at the Walpole Public Library (WPL). The audience enjoyed listening to the group’s performance and singing along to some of the selections.
The group brought joy and memories to the audience with traditional pieces, such as “We Need a Little Christmas,” “Silver Bells,” “O Tannenbaum,” “I’ll Be Home for Christmas,” “Feliz Navidad,” and other beloved songs.
Senior Moments also performed a few songs that were lesser known or not necessarily known as holiday songs. “Ocho Kandelikas” was a lively Sephardic Hannukah song sung in a nearly extinct dialect of Spanish. The audience enjoyed shouting out the numbers of candles for each day of Hannukah, “uno,” “dos,” and so on. “Dona Nobis Pacem” was sung in a round in Latin, with the chorus expressing a wish for peace. The lyrics of “Auld Lang Syne,” normally sung on New Year’s Eve, spoke about looking over the memories of the past year and looking forward to great things to happen in the coming year.
Two sections of sing-along songs delighted the audience, as they lovingly sang songs that brought back happy memories of past holidays. The lyrics were presented on a screen above the seated chorus.
Director Linda Saripelli introduced the selections with enthusiasm, mentioning historical information or notes about how they will be presented. Accompanist Mary Ann Baker played with panache and enthusiasm. Both women were music teachers in the Walpole Public Schools.
The chorus was fortunate to also be accompanied by Joy Collins and Judy Collins on guitar, as they added a warm dimension to the music.
The Senior Moments Chorus has been singing for the community for 16 years. The 24 current members of the chorus are a volunteer group ranging in age from 60 to 97. They meet weekly at the Walpole Senior Center.
