KENT, Conn.—The aura of Christmas is created as much by sights and sounds as it is by religious tradition. For Matthew Harris, director of St. Andrew’s Music in the Nave series, part of that atmosphere emanates from the annual Handel’s Messiah Sing-In, slated this year for 8 p.m. on Friday, Dec. 12.
“Some organizations have planned concerts at earlier hours, but we’ve kept ours at 8 p.m.,” he said. “That means that people can enjoy themselves at dinner with family and friends and then mosey on over to the church. It’s so nice to stand in the church and see people strolling along from different directions and ending up at the church. The church has wonderful acoustics, but at night, when the light is coming from the inside, it’s just as beautiful from the outside.”
As for the concert itself, Harris believes it “just keeps getting better.” Now in its 14th year, it features lead singers of “operatic quality, with big, strong voices that make it exciting,” Harris said.
Three of the four singers from last year—mezzo Meredith Ziegler, tenor Paul Patinka, bass-baritone Greg Flower—will return this year, which will help to polish the performance. James Sinclair, artistic director of Orchestra New England will conduct the Sherman Chamber Ensemble and the guest soloists. “The ones that are coming back know what our conductor wants,” Harris said.
Soprano Juliet Schlefer, heard in last season’s Mozart in May, will fill the fourth slot, making her Messiahdebut, and organist Laurel Larsen is welcomed back.
As always, audience members are invited to sing the choral parts and will be provided scores. “We seem to collect more people each year,” said Harris. Each year someone discovers us. Singing is not mandatory but, if people want to sing, we try to arrange the community singers with all the sopranos in one quadrant, the altos opposite them, and the tenors behind the altos, so we get a more solid sound. But if a bass wants to stand with a soprano, that’s okay, too.”
“A lot of people just like to listen,” he continued, “but just knowing that their neighbors are out there singing along makes a nice feeling of camaraderie. It’s always a very good vibe.” The guest performers sing the choral portion, too and Harris promises that, “with the professional singers belting it out, even if someone gets shy, we still have a wonderful sound.”
George Frideric Handel’s monumental Messiah has delighted audiences since its Dublin premiere in 1742. This performance includes Part One (The Nativity) and the celebrated “Hallelujah Chorus.”
“This a quasi-operatic event,” said Harris. “I really like the fact that we do just Part One, the Nativity Part. The whole Messiah takes about 2 hours—it’s definitely a big monument of a piece—but this is just the right length for a community event.”
He finds the church, itself, just the right size for the classical piece. “We are going to get a good audience but we don’t need 500 people to create a kind of electricity.”
To make the holiday tradition accessible to all, the organizers have kept ticket prices at $25 for adults and free for students. “We want it to be a family thing,” said Harris. “I think children over 8 years old could enjoy it.
St. Andrew’s is located 1 North Main St. (corner of Routes 7 and 341). Tickets are available online and at the door. For more information, call 860-927-3486, email office.sa.kent@gmail.com, or click here.
