Lessons and Carols Performance Rings with Holiday Cheer

Author: Liz Braunstein

Mead Chapel had everything but a glowing fireplace.
The rows of poinsettias housed on the altar, wreaths hanging from the balconies draped with red ribbon and lit candles placed around the room created a warm atmosphere for Middlebury College's annual Lessons and Carols for Advent and Christmas celebration.
On Sunday, Dec. 8 at 4 p.m. and 7 p.m., members of the Middlebury community gathered together to welcome the holiday season.
As the crowd entered the chapel, organist Emory Fanning played several choral preludes to set the tone for the evening.
The service featured the Middlebury College Choir, conducted by Twilight Artist-in-Residence FranÁois Clemmons, and the Middlebury College Chamber Singers, conducted by Jeff Reh-bach, who is also special projects manager for the Department of Library and Information Services.
The choirs sounded "O Come, O Come Emmanuel" from the back of the pews, officially opening the night as they proceeded slowly down the aisle to take their places.
Chaplain Laurel Jordan delivered the opening remarks, greeting the assembly. "Many people have worked for several months so that we can enter into the season of Christmas," she said. "Let us make this chapel glad with songs of praise."
The structure of the service included nine lessons from the Bible, each read aloud by a member of the Middlebury College community, including faculty, staff and students.
Alternating with the recitations were a series of carols, usually having a theme tied to the previously delivered lesson.
While some carols were sung by the entire congregation, others were performed by one or both of the choirs.
The carols sung by the congregation were led by the two choirs and included "Of God's Very Heart Begotten," "Prepare the Way O Zion," "Lo How a Rose," "Joy to the World," "A Stable Lamp is Lighted," "Angels We Have Heard on High," "Silent Night," and "O Come All Ye Faithful."
The Middlebury College Choir, a group open to all levels of singing ability, tended to sing the more joyous and well-known carols, such as "Go Tell it on the Mountain."
Their performance radiated with glee and excitement, as Clemmons motioned to the congregation to join in with the swaying and clapping chorus.
They also sang the "Carol of the Bells."
In order to be as expressive as possible, they fully embraced their music.
In contrast, the Middlebury College Chamber Singers, a select group, performed elegant and more complex pieces, focusing on musical detail and superior sound quality.
The clear and light sound of their performances pierced the silence created by the awe of the congregation.
They sang "There is No Rose of Such Virtue" and "Magi Videntes Stellam." Together, the choirs performed "Behold a Star from Jacob Shining" and the "Hallelujah Chorus."
The different interpretations of performance, represented by the two choirs and the variety of carols could only please the congregation.
The friendly and comfortable mood invited the entire congregation to rise and sing in unison.
The crowd consisted of members from all corners of the community, but the evening connected them all.
"It was a wonderful way to begin the holiday season," said first-year Meg Guffin.
The following week, President John McCardell held a Holiday Open House for the Addison County community at his house on Sunday, Dec. 15.