Christmas Press Release

DEC. 6, THE UAB DEPARTMENT OF MUSIC TO PRESENT HOLIDAY FAMILY FAVORITE, “CHRISTMAS AT THE ALYS”



BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – The University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) Concert Choir and Chamber Singers will join with the Hueytown High School Chamber Choir in presenting “Christmas at the Alys,” at 3 p.m. Sunday, December 6, at UAB’s Alys Stephens Center, 1200 10th Ave. South. Admission is free. Call 205-975-2787.

“Christmas at the Alys” is an annual celebration of the season presented by the UAB Department of Music.



This year several well-known works associated with the holiday spirit will be included on the program, including Maurice Durufle’s “Ubi Caritas,” Elizabeth Poston’s “Jesus Christ the Apple Tree” and Healy Willan’s “The Three Kings.” Other works to be featured will include traditional favorites of the Christmas season, such as “Fum, Fum, Fum” and “Carol of the Bells” by the Hueytown Chamber Choir. The choirs will unite on “What Sweeter Music,” a work by English composer John Rutter that has quickly become a standard among fine choirs across the world.

The UAB Concert Choir frequently introduces lesser known choral masterpieces to classical audiences. For this concert, the choir will perform “Videntes Stellam Magi,” a work by Emanuele Vianelli, a composer with the Milan, Italy cathedral since 1998.

Touring nationally and internationally, the UAB Concert Choir has quickly gained recognition as one of Alabama’s finest a cappella choirs. In March 2010, the choir will be featured at the American Choral Directors Association regional convention in Memphis, Tenn. The choir was recently featured at the National Collegiate Choral Organization (NCCO) convention in Cincinnati, Ohio. In 2008, the choir won the Heinrich Schütz Perpetual Trophy for their performance of a work by the Baroque composer in the Fleischman International Choral Competition in Cork, Ireland. It was UAB’s second international competition; the first was participation in the 34th annual Florlilege Vocal de Tours in Tours, France, where the choir won two awards, the Prix Du Ministère de La Culture, an award given for best interpretation of a French choral work, and shared the top award in the Mixed Choirs Category.



About UAB

UAB is the first all-Steinway piano school in Alabama. The UAB Department of Music presents more than 150 concerts, recitals, master classes and lectures each year – many of them free – for more than 400,000 people throughout the region. The department features 17 ensembles. Visit the department online at www.music.uab.edu.