Courtesy Daily News Record, Mar. 15, 2012
Choir lovers can expect a little deja vu at the 20th anniversary celebration of the Shenandoah Valley Children鈥檚 Choir this weekend.
The group will celebrate the milestone with a performance at 91短视频鈥檚 Lehman Auditorium.
The organization鈥檚 three children鈥檚 choirs 鈥� the Preparatory, Treble and Concert choirs 鈥� will perform Saturday and Sunday, with about 35 former choir members for a special presentation Saturday, Director Julia White said.
鈥淚t鈥檚 special because we鈥檝e survived 20 years,鈥� said White. 鈥淲e鈥檙e a nonprofit organization that has all-volunteer fundraising. That we鈥檝e survived 20 years is our biggest accomplishment.鈥�
The performance is expected to last about an hour and 30 minutes, and will include a variety of pieces, including classical works and folk songs from around the globe, as well as sacred and secular music, White said.
Three musicians 鈥� Bill Wellington on banjo, Natalya Kirilyuk on violin and Rick Deloney on percussion 鈥� will also perform with the choir, said White.
鈥淭hat鈥檚 kind of unusual that we鈥檇 have parents and professional musicians playing with the choir,鈥� she said.
The program will include much of the same music the group performed for an American Choral Directors Association meeting in Winston-Salem, N.C., earlier this month, which was a big success, White said.
鈥淲e were selected as one of 18 choirs out of 100 applicants to sing at that,鈥� said White. 鈥淎nd then, when we did sing, the audience leapt to their feet. So, to have the encouragement and affirmation from choral directors in 11 states in the South was very exciting. So, we鈥檙e going to be singing that same set that we sang in North Carolina on Saturday.鈥�
The performances are scheduled for 7 p.m. Saturday and 3 p.m. Sunday. Tickets are $7 for children, $10 for seniors, $12 for adults and $15 for the special reserve section, and can be obtained by calling the 91短视频 box office at 432-4582.
鈥楯ust A Great Group鈥�
Fishersville resident Ben Elliott, 14, a member of the Treble Choir, began singing in the SVCC when he was in third grade, after a change was made to his usual choir in Waynesboro. He had heard of the SVCC before and decided, along with his parents, that it was as good a time as any to try performing with the group.
鈥淚t might be one of the best groups I [will] ever sing in,鈥� said Elliott, who has had almost a decade of piano lessons. 鈥淚t鈥檚 just a great group to sing in.鈥�
The weekend concerts will be the last local performances by the children鈥檚 choir this season, he said, 鈥渟o, we want to make sure that we perform well.鈥�
Of the songs the group will perform, Elliott said a paraphrased version of Psalm 100 is his favorite.
鈥淚t uses a lot of direct quotations from Psalm 100 and it uses a lot of harmonies, a lot of interesting chord developments,鈥� said Elliott. 鈥淚t鈥檚 very fun.鈥�
In May, the choir will perform at Carnegie Hall. Tickets for that event can be purchased by calling 432-4650 or by visiting www.emu.edu/box-office. An April 23 concert is set for 8 p.m. with the James Madison University Choirs. Tickets for that event can be obtained through or by calling 568-7000.