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(Posted 7:30 a.m., Dec. 4)
Orléans
Christmas Choirfest a choral celebration of the holiday
season
By Fred Sherwin
Orléans Online
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Members of the Sonshine Singers, Divine Infant
Children's Ministry Choir, Cross Town Youth
Chorus and the Orleans United Church Choir
join forces to open the 2012 Orleans Christmas
Choirfest. Fred Sherwin/Photo
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The
Community Pentecostal Church was the scene of a joyous
celebration of the holiday season Sunday evening as 10
choirs gathered from across Orléans for the 28th
annual Christmas Choirfest.
The
Orléans Christmas Choirfest has been bringing choirs
together for the past 28 years with the goal of raising
money for area food banks at a time when the need is greatest.
As
has become tradition, the concert was opened by a mass
junior choir with members from the Sonshine Singers, the
Divine Infant Children's Ministry Choir, the Cross Town
Youth Chorus and the Orleans United Junior Choir, joining
together to sing "Al Shlosa".
The
Sonshine Singers followed with "Rise Up Shepherd
and Follow" featuring soloist Precious Izioman, and
"He Reigns" featuring soloists Courtney, Victoria
and Christina Goddard.
The
Divine Infant Children's Ministry Choir then took the
stage to perform "The Christmas Shoes", followed
by he Cross Town Youth Chorus which sang "Sunny Bank"
before the United Church Junior Choir concluded the junior
portion of the concert with the song "Love Will Be
Born".
The
entire gathering then joined together for a rousing rendition
of "O Come All Ye Faithfull".
Another
tradition of the Christmas Choirfest is to recite portions
of the Christmas Story from scripture in between each
performance.
The
first adult choir to take the stage was the Orleans United
Church Choir which sang "Then We Shall Sing for Joy",
accompanied by violinist Ian Richardson, followed by a
medley of three Moravian carols.
As
members of the audience joined together to sing "What
Child Is This", the Queenswood United Church Choir
took the stage to sing "Rock-A-Bye Bethlehem Baby"
and "Calypso Carol".
The
St. Peter Catholic High School Choir drew the first standing
ovation of the evening with their performance of "Petit
Papa Noel" featuring soloist Drew Plummer who was
absolutely mesmerizing. They then earned a second standing
ovation accompanied by violinist Sarah Als.
A
short intermission then followed to allow for the collection
of a freewill donation for the Gloucester Emergency Food
Cupboard and the Orléans Cumberland Community Resource
Centre food program. The Choirfest has raised over $85,000
for the two local charities over the years. This year's
donations were expected to top $3,000.
After
the break, the Divine Infant Roman Catholic Church Choir
took the stage to sing "Born In The Fullness Of Time",
followed by a Christmas version of Leonard Cohen's "Hallelujah".
The
Cumberland Community Singers stuck to tradition with their
performance of "Away In The Manger" and "Come
And Adore", after which the audience once again joined
together to sing "Angels We Have Heard On High".
The
last choir to perform was the St. Helen's Anglican Church
Choir which selected "Silent Night For All The World"
and "He Just Had To Come Down" for their segment
of the Choirfest.
As
the audience rose to sing "Joy To The World",
all 10 choruses filled the stage for a mass performance
of "When Christmas Comes" and "Everywhere
I Go" led by soloist Cathy Goddard.
The
benediction was then read by Pastor Stephen Crilly from
Community Pentecostal Church, after which the mass choir
brought the choirfest to its traditional close with a
soaring performance of "Peace Peace" accompanied
by guests harpists Joanne Griffin and Heather Flinn.
This
year's Choirfest was recorded by Roger's Channel 22 which
will broadcast the concert at various times during the
holiday season.
(This
story was made possible thanks to the generous support of
our local business partners.)
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THE OTTAWA SCHOOL OF THEATRE presents an all ages production of Treasure Island in the Richcraft Theatre at the Shenkman Arts Centre. Showtimes Thursday, April 18 and Friday, April 19 at 6:30 p.m. and Saturday, April 20 and Sunday, April 21 at 1:30 p.m. Tickets $20 for adults. Students and youth 25 and under $10. To purchase visit 
TAPROOM 260 presents Michael Ben-Shalom live from 8-11 p.m. at 260 Centrum Blvd. For more information visit 
TAPROOM 260 presents The Underground live from 8-11 p.m. at 260 Centrum Blvd. For more information visit 
CLASSIC PIANO RECITAL – Orléans pianist Emily Hou will be performing works by Chopin, Mozart, Rachmaninov and Liszt at Kanata United Church as part os the Beaverbrook Community Concert Series. The recital will start promptly at 3 p.m. Kanata United Church is located at 33 Leacock Dr. in Kanata. For more information visit 
THE ORLÉANS BREWING CO. Trivia Night from 7:30 p.m. to 9 p.m. Call (613) 834-9005 to reserve your spot. The Orléans Brewing Co. is located at 4380 Innes Rd. near the Innes Road McDonalds.
