The Newberg Graphic Online

Sing-along Messiah on tap for Dec. 6

Spiritual music — Fourth installment of the popular event could fill First United Methodist Church

• By: Laurent Bonczijk  
• Published: 11/27/2009 1:08:24 PM

   Dec. 6 will mark the fourth annual installment of the Sing-Along Messiah and the crew behind the production is hoping to make the hosting church bulge at the seams.
   George Fox University director of bands Dick Elliott will again be in charge of the music, while his fellow faculty member Loren Wenz, chairman of the department of performing arts, will again conduct.
   The two men said that there will be little change in the production this year. Elliott said that one of the four soloists, the alto, would be new, the replacement being local singer Melissa Thomas.
   “She’s also a terrific singer,” said Brent Weaver who teaches at GFU and as a baritone base will sing the bass solos. Wenz said that Weaver had sung his parts so well last year that “we rewarded him by giving him more than one solo this year.” All four soloists will be local this year.
   “We’re dropping two choruses,” Wenz added, explaining that length of the program had become ponderous and that the choruses weren’t familiar enough to people. “We want this to be a pleasant experience.”
   Wenz said the singers can’t be as relaxed and enjoy their performance if they have to slog through particularly hard and unfamiliar pieces.
   As usual there will be only one rehearsal and for the soloists only. Elliott has been practicing and getting into shape for his trumpet solo. Wenz compared the difficulty of that piece to running a marathon with a major hill at the end.  “It’s not played on a regular trumpet,” Elliott said, but on a D trumpet. He added that for trumpet players this is a standard piece to play.
   “It’s high, it’s long, and it’s tricky,” Wenz said of “The Trumpet Shall Sound” solo. “But we have fun,” Elliott added.
   “He (Handel) really challenges the musician,” Wenz said. It’s one of the composer’s trademark that he wrote to make specific instruments sound their best even if it required great dexterity and mastery to be able to play those parts.
   While the concert is an open invitation for Newbergers to come and sing along, Wenz said that non-singers can enjoy the performance as well. “They can participate by listening,” he said, “having an audience is kind of fun.”
   Conducting the concert for the first time last year, Wenz said he was surprised by the turnout and the support from the community. Elliott, who worships at First United Methodist Church, estimated the crowd at around 250, an increase over previous years, and that if it kept building they would have to find a new venue in the future.
   The concert serves as a fund-raiser for Faith In Action, a ministry which provides services to people who face challenges due to health or aging in and around Newberg. FIA will sell memorial poinsettias prior to the event. People can choose to pick up their flowers at the Dec. 6 concert or donate them for older adults who are recipients of FIA services. Orders must be received by Tuesday and can be made by calling 503-537-1549 or logging on to www.faithinactionnewberg.org.
   The concert will start at 4 p.m. Dec. 6. Newberg First United Methodist Church is located at 1205 Deborah Road.

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