"The Darkest Midnight in December": A Holiday Concert with Choir and Orchestra

TACOMA, Wash. – “The darkest midnight in December, no snow or hail nor winter’s storm will hinder us from remembering,” begins the traditional Irish text from a song that lends its title to this year’s Adelphian holiday concert.

Fortunately, the popular winter concert at the University of Puget Sound never fails to be remembered by the appreciative crowds who attend each year, whatever Tacoma delivers in terms of weather.

In December, the Darkest Midnight, featuring the Adelphian Concert Choir and Voci d’Amici singers, will be held at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday, Dec. 5, and at 2 p.m. on Sunday, Dec. 6, in Kilworth Memorial Chapel on campus. Tickets are $10 general and $5 for seniors, students, military, and Puget Sound faculty, staff, and students. To reserve your tickets, see below.

Director of Choral Activities Steven Zopfi will conduct the singers, Chaplain David Wright will provide readings, and members of the college’s Symphony Orchestra will accompany them.

“I always look forward to this concert, as do the students,” says Zopfi. “It allows us to explore many different musical traditions and styles, and adds an international flavor to the holiday repertoire.”

The performances will introduce audiences to holiday music from Israel, Egypt, England, France, and the United States, and delight them with some traditional old favorites.

Modern American composer Stephen Main’s award-winning work The Darkest Midnight in December, which borrows its lyrics from an old Irish song, will be but one of the highlights. The featured work will be Christmas Cantata, by contemporary American composer Daniel Pinkham. The three-movement work for choir, brass quartet, and organ was originally composed for Boston’s New England Conservatory of Music's chorus and brass. It has since become an audience favorite.

 

The concerts will include compositions from artists including George Frideric Handel, the 18th-century, German-born, British Baroque composer; Max Janowski, composer of Jewish choral works used in synagogues around the world; Sir William Turner Walton, of Britain, who wrote music ranging from film scores to opera; Thomas Morley, prolific choral works composer of the 16th century; and Shawn Kirchner, contemporary American composer, known, in part, for his innovative treatment of international folk songs and Christmas carols.

The Adelphian Concert Choir has attracted accolades from audiences in the United States, Canada, Europe. Every year the choir gains new talent as students worldwide join the School of Music and audition for a place. The choir regularly travels the Northwest and elsewhere to perform, continuing a tradition that started with its founding in 1932.

Voci d’Amici is a 16-voice, a cappella ensemble selected from members of the Adelphian Concert Choir. The popular ensemble has a repertoire ranging from the Renaissance to the 21st century.

 

Steven Zopfi, one of the leading young conductors in the Pacific Northwest, currently also serves as the artistic director and conductor of the Portland Symphonic Choir, the Oregon Symphony's official chorus.

FOR TICKETS: Tickets are available online at tickets.pugetsound.edu or Wheelock Information Center, 253.879.3100. Admission is $10 for the general public; $5 for seniors (55+), students, military, and Puget Sound faculty, staff, and students. Any remaining tickets will be available at the door.  

For directions and a map of the campus: pugetsound.edu/directions
For accessibility information, please contact accessibility@pugetsound.edu or 253.879.3236, or visit pugetsound.edu/accessibility.

Press photos of the Adelphian Concert Choir, and Steven Zopfi can be downloaded from pugetsound.edu/pressphotos.

Photos on page: From top right: Adelphian Concert Choir, by Ross Mulhausen; Ramadan lanterns in Egypt, by B. Simpson; Christmas candles, by Achim Raschka; Hanukkah menorah, by Finni; Conductor Steven Zopfi.

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