For a second year, Kutztown University hosts its annual Holiday Concert on Sunday, Dec. 11 at 3:30 p.m. in Schaeffer Auditorium, featuring a blend of holiday music from ensembles including the KU Jazz Band, Wind Ensemble, Choir, Orchestra, Trombone Choir and Clarinet Ensemble.
“Our intention is to continue this program as an annual event that can be shared with KU students, faculty, and the Kutztown community as a whole,” said KU Orchestra Director Peter Isaacson, Assistant Professor of Music in the College of Visual and Performing Arts. “We would really like to have the people from Kutztown and the surrounding towns come to the performance.”
A celebration of the holiday season, Isaacson said the concert is unique because it literally features all the music students in the entire Music Department at KU, which is about 170 students, and all of the universities’ large ensembles including the KU Choir, KU Jazz Band, KU Orchestra and KU Wind Ensemble in one performance. Alongside the large ensembles will be the Trombone Choir and the clarinet ensemble and a surprise collaboration.
“If one had to describe the event, I would call it a kaleidoscope of sounds embracing the holiday season,” he said.
Isaacson wants people to know about KU and feel welcome on campus and come to events.
“There is an amazing energy and excitement that occurs when our students are able to perform for a large audience. The relationship between the audience and the performer is unique and symbiotic,” he said. “Our audiences cause us all to reach higher and perform with an extra dedication that is palpable and impossible to duplicate in rehearsal.”
Isaacson believes the concert adds to the community holiday spirit because the music itself is such a powerful vehicle for celebration.
“The hope, joy and pageantry that is present each year as the holiday season begins can be reinvigorated and amplified through music,” he said.
The music performed will include classical style music by John Rutter, Randal Stroope, traditional carols, and popular holiday music by LeRoy Anderson and others.
