In December of 1947 several Wellesley church choirs and other individuals organized a Festival of Christmas Music. The Festival was a great success and the group kept right on singing. Seventy years later, the group, called the Wellesley Choral Society since 1966, is alive and well and constitutes the oldest secular, non-religious musical group in Wellesley. To commemorate the seventy years since its founding, the Wellesley Choral Society is embarking on a celebratory anniversary season.
The first concert of this special season takes place on Sun, Nov. 12 at 2 p.m. at the Unitarian Universalist Society of Wellesley Hills, 309 Washington Street, Wellesley Hills. The concert is entitled “A Celebration of the Decades,” because all the works on the program have been sung by the chorus at some point in the past. The opening piece, the J.S. Bach chorale, “Now Let Heaven and Earth Adore Thee,” was first performed on May 12, 1948, at the first official concert of the Wellesley Choral Society (then called the Wellesley Community Chorus).
Each decade of the chorus’ existence is represented by several pieces. Among them are selections from the oratorio “Elijah” by F. Mendelssohn, the Kyrie from the “Mass in G” by F. Schubert, two excerpts from the oratorio “King David” by A. Honegger, the “Cantique de Jean Racine” by G. Fauré, choral and orchestra dance selections from the opera “Dido and Aeneas” by H. Purcell, “Elegischer Gesang” by L. van Beethoven, two chorales from the dramatic cantata “David and Jonathon” by E. Whalen, Music Director of the WCS, the duet “Pur Ti Miro” from C. Monteverdi’s opera “L’incoronazione de Poppea,” and more. Even a light-hearted piece is on the program: the “Cat Duet” by G. Rossini. The beloved song “America the Beautiful,” which has been performed by the chorus at many concerts throughout the decades, is also included. A high point of this celebratory event will be the singing of “Ave Verum Corpus” by W. A. Mozart, when the chorus will be joined by former members.
Accompaniment is by professional string quartet, piano, and, for one piece, guitar. A reception follows the concert to which the entire audience is cordially invited. The church is handicapped accessible and there is ample free parking in the church lot and on the street. Tickets may be purchased at the door: $20 general admission, $15 students and seniors, children under 12 free. This concert is supported in part by a grant from the Wellesley Cultural Council, a local agency, which is supported by the Massachusetts Cultural Council, a state agency and by the Fund for Wellesley, an endowed fund of the Foundation for Metro West.
For further information, visit www.wellesleychoralsociety.org.
