Over 200 people attended the Brantford Symphony Orchestra’s (BSO) annual holiday concert, Christmastime in the City, on Saturday, December 14, 2024.
A tradition for locals and out-of-town visitors alike, the performance blended a mix of classic festive music and seasonal cheer for all those in attendance.
Philip Sarabura, artistic director and conductor for the BSO, kicked off the evening with a warm welcome and a brief run through of the evening’s line up.
“Everybody knows, you can’t stop Christmas from coming and with that, comes all of your favourite Christmas songs. We’re going to play a lot of them for you here tonight, and in a little bit, we’re going to be joined by the Strata Vocal Ensemble, a group that comes from just down the 403 in Hamilton,” said Sarabura. ”But before they join us, you’re going to hear a ‘Canadian Brass Christmas,’ which is a melody arrangement by Calvin Custer, of four of the Canadian Brass’ favourite tunes from their Christmas album, the Canadian Brass Christmas. …After that ‘O Holy Night’ by the same arranger; you’re going to love the way that it starts so softly and delicately, and then rises up in this huge wave of orchestral sound. Make sure you’re paying particular attention to the wonderful cello section’s solo, backed up by the clarinets, near the beginning.”
After performing Peter Tchaikovsky’s ‘Waltz of the Flowers’ from The Nutcracker ballet, which featured a harp solo from Emily Belvedere at the beginning, members of the Strata Vocal Ensemble joined the over 50 orchestra members on stage for Eleanor Daley’s “Rejoice and Sing.”
Following Daley’s piece, the ensemble went straight into Ralph Vaughan Williams’ “Wassail Song.”
“I was curious about the background of this piece, and so I did a little bit of investigating and I learned that the English folk tune on which this work is based, is very old and it it dates back to at least the late 1700s, but probably much earlier than that,” explained Sarabura. “It tells of the custom of people going door-to-door on the 12th day after Christmas, singing carols and songs of goodwill, bringing good wishes for the New Year and inviting people to have a drink from their wassail bowl.”
After Daniel Pinkham’s “Christmas Cantata – Gloria in excelsis Deo!’ and Harry Simeone’s “Do you hear what I hear?” both the ensemble and the orchestra left the stage for a brief intermission.
Moving into the second act, the audience were treated with more holiday classics. From Robert Sheldon’s “A most wonderful Christmas,” to Rob Krogstad’s “The Christmas Song,” and more, there were plenty of crowd favourites for guests to enjoy.
Afterwards, the vocal ensemble once again took the stage to sing Paul Campbell’s “Jingle Bells,” and a short while later, a large screen came down from the Sanderson Centre’s ceiling to display the words for Howard Cable’s “A Merry Christmas Medley” sing-along.
As the show wrapped up and the lights came on, the orchestra surprised newer audience members with a lively encore performance of Benjamin Hanby’s “Up on the Housetop.”
Following the performance, Stacey Bester, said the performance was “absolutely magical.”
“I just love the symphony. I am not a musical person and I can’t play an instrument, but when I come to the symphony’s holiday concert, I literally feel like I’m in the middle of a Christmas movie,” said Bester. “This was really just a great prelude into the holiday season and I wish more knew how incredible this performance is. It’s just a very joyful and entertaining event and it reminds me of being a kid again, especially during the sing along, it was awesome.”
Kimberly De Jong’s reporting is funded by the Canadian government through its Local Journalism Initiative.The funding allows her to report rural and agricultural stories from Blandford-Blenheim and Brant County. Reach her at kimberly.dejong@brantbeacon.ca.
