December 9, 2024

St. Cecilia Parish to present annual Festival of Carols on Dec. 15

REGIONAL
Story and photos courtesy of Rebecca Drake

WILBRAHAM – While Christmas merchandise has been on store shelves since the day after Halloween, for many local residents the spiritual side of the season begins with annual Christmas concerts, including the Festival of Carols that will be presented on Sunday, Dec. 15 at 4 p.m. at St. Cecilia Church, 42 Main St., Wilbraham.

The concert is free but a free-will offering will be gratefully accepted. In the event of inclement weather, the snow date will be Dec. 22 at 4 p.m.

“It doesn’t feel like Christmas until the Festival of Carols,” said Elizabeth Mussio, who will be singing in the alto section for this year’s concert. “I love getting people into the holiday spirit and what better way to do that than singing?”

“This is my 10^th year at the St Cecilia’s Festival of Carols, I was only 17 when I started singing,” said Mussio, who teaches music at St. Mary School in Westfield. Along with other members of the choir, Mussio noted that the recent time change from an evening performance to 4 p.m. has been greatly appreciated by the hundreds of audience members who attend the concert each year.

“I love that we moved to 4 p.m. I feel like we get a bigger crowd of all ages, even more of our little friends,” she said, referring to the increased attendance of young children. “It’s much safer to go early when we have our ‘white’ week-before-Christmas. It ensures everyone is in the holiday mood, and that they get home safely.

“My mom absolutely loves the Christmas concert,” Mussio added. “And up until her passing, our dear family friend, Donna Ryan, would drive from Boston or Rhode Island to come hear us sing.”

Alto Luanna Roberts echoed these sentiments. “My family always attends this magical performance,” she said. “They all love the time change. It’s not too late. They can get home in time for supper or go out.”

Parish music director Todd Rovelli, who plays piano and organ for the concert, will direct members of the adult choir, along with additional instrumentalists, during a program that includes both religious and secular pieces. In addition to longstanding audience favorites, such as “O Holy Night,” “Ave Maria” and “Mary, Did You Know,” Rovelli expressed excitement about some new songs in this year’s program.

“The concert will include an incredible arrangement of the heart-wrenching hymn, ‘The Coventry Carol,’ with accompaniment adapted from a popular J.S. Bach chorale and a rich choral setting by Mark Hayes,” he said. “In contrast, the mash-up setting of ‘Angels We Have Heard on High’ and the gospel-rock style anthem ‘Open Up the Heavens’ just might have some folks dancing in the aisles.”

Rovelli also praised the local professional musicians who have brought their talents to the concert for many years.

“For most of its 26-year run, Festival of Carols has featured several phenomenal instrumentalists: Donna Kennedy on flute, Bruce Diehl on clarinet and saxophone, Peter Roe on trumpet, and percussionist extraordinaire, Jill Mongeau,” Rovelli said. “Together with the members of the adult choir, they are like family to me. And the music we’re able to create is pure joy.”

The adult choir will be joined by the children’s choir this year for the first time since 2019. The children will lead the song, “Somewhere in My Memory,” from the holiday hit, “Home Alone.” 

“I am thrilled to have the children join us once again. They add so much and they do such a great job. Some of the former members of the children’s choir are now members of the adult choir. So it’s fantastic to see how these young people have continued with music ministry through the years,” Rovelli added.

Choir members say that bringing this joy to the audience is their greatest reward.

“So many audience members over the years have commented that they look forward to the festival every year – that the festival gets them into the Christmas spirit,” said soprano Diane Diehl. “They’re also so thankful for all of the time that the choir, the musicians and Todd puts into rehearsing – they know that this doesn’t happen overnight.”

“Seeing the smiles on the faces of the audience is the most rewarding,” Diehl continued. “Because my husband is also one of the musicians, it’s one of the few times that we get to perform together, which makes the concert even more meaningful.”

Roberts, whose family has gone Christmas caroling together since she was a child, said, “The most rewarding part for me is the joy I see on the audience’s faces, especially when we sing a song that evokes memories of their childhood feelings. Music is what feelings sound like.”