November 15, 2005

Whitworth Presents 2005 Christmas Festival Concert, "Great Tidings of Joy"

The 2005 Whitworth College Christmas Festival Concert, "Great Tidings of Joy," will take place in Gig Harbor, Bellevue, Seattle and Spokane, and will feature the Whitworth Choir and the Whitworth Women's Choir, with the assistance of brass, string and percussion ensembles.

"The concert theme is drawn from stories of hope from the biblical prophets, Christ's nativity, and His everlasting presence among us," says Marc A. Hafso, Whitworth professor of music and director of choral activities. "During the concert the Whitworth musicians and audience members will celebrate 'Great Tidings of Joy' through word, choral works, and congregational carols."

The concert will feature performances of "A Prayer of the Middle Ages," by Howard Hanson; "Kyrie" and "Gloria," by György Orbán; an Advent suite from George F. Handel's celebrated oratorio, Messiah; "What Sweeter Music," by Eleanor Daley; and "Christmas Day" from Choral Fantasy, by Gustav Holst. The concert will also include an encore of the joyful processional, Eja!, an audience favorite from the 2004 concert, which features the Whitworth choirs, the percussion ensemble, and student dancers. Eja! was composed by Scott Hafso, Marc A. Hafso's brother, who is a lecturer at the University of Washington School of Drama.

The Whitworth Women's Choir will perform under the direction of Associate Director of Choral Activities Debbie Hansen, and the string musicians will perform with the assistance of Philip Baldwin, Whitworth's new assistant professor of music and director of strings. Baldwin will also play the violin countermelody in the Air and Chorus, "O Thou That Tellest Good Tidings to Zion" from Handel's Messiah.

Following is concert and ticket information for each performance location:

• Gig Harbor
  When: Friday, Dec. 2, at 8 p.m.
  Where: Chapel Hill Presbyterian Church, 7700 Skansie Ave. NW
  
  
• Bellevue
  When: Saturday, Dec. 3, at 7 p.m.
  Where: First Presbyterian Church of Bellevue, 1717 Bellevue Way NE
  
  
• Seattle
  When: Sunday, Dec. 4, at 3 p.m.
  Where: First Presbyterian Church, 1013 8th Ave.

Tickets: $15 general admission, $12 for students/seniors. Tickets for the Gig Harbor, Bellevue and Seattle concerts can be purchased by calling (800) 532-4668. A limited number of tickets may also be available for purchase at the door prior to each concert.

• Spokane:
  When: Friday, Dec. 9, at 8 p.m. and Saturday, Dec. 10 at 3 p.m. and 7 p.m.
  Where: First Presbyterian Church, 318 S. Cedar St.

Tickets: $15 general admission, $12 for students/seniors. Tickets for the Spokane concerts can be purchased by calling (509) 467-9397 or by contacting TicketsWest at (509) 325-SEAT or www.ticketswest.com. A limited number of tickets may also be available for purchase at the door prior to each concert.

Located in Spokane, Wash., Whitworth is a private, liberal arts college affiliated with the Presbyterian Church (USA). The college enrolls 2,400 students in more than 50 undergraduate and graduate programs.

Contacts:

Marc A. Hafso, professor of music and director of choral activities, Whitworth College, (509) 777-4589 or mhafso@whitworth.edu.

Joan Lack or Loree Swegle, music department program assistants, (509) 777-3280 or jlack@whitworth.edu or lswegle@whitworth.edu.

Julie Riddle, public information officer, Whitworth College, (509) 777-3729 or jriddle@whitworth.edu.