The Southeast Chorus and the Northwest Chorus came together on Saturday and Sunday for their annual celebration of Christmas music.
The first performance was Saturday night at Trinity Lutheran Church in Estevan and the second was Sunday afternoon at Concordia Lutheran Church in Crosby, N.D. Fifty-six musicians from southern Saskatchewan and northern North Dakota came together for the concerts.
Harlan Johnson and Shawna Meek are the two choir directors. Johnson is from North Dakota and Meek is from Estevan. Johnson has been a member of the choir since 1986 and he has been a director for 10 of those years.
Meek has been a member of the choir for 19 years and she has been directing for two years.
This year was the 48th annual Celebration of Christmas music, and Johnson described the choir as a non-audition choir to attract more young people. So far the choir has seen some new members and is still sounding great.
“This is our 47th year as being an international choir and we are a non-audition choir; we have seen more new members in the last few years,” said Johnson. “What we really think is nice this year is we have gotten a lot of younger people to come and join us.”
The choruses perform a mixture of music. Some is modern and some is classical. The choir had a band accompany them from North Dakota as well.
“We have a classical piece by Giovanni Pergolesi and we also have modern music that was written three years ago,” said Johnson.
The choruses will also be part of the Rotary Club of Estevan’s Christmas Carol Festival on Dec. 10 at St. Paul’s United Church. Members will also appear at Tioga, N.D. this month.
