'Carols by Candlelight'
Delaware Diamonds Society members gather for holiday event
11:43 a.m., Dec. 23, 2014--On Monday, Dec. 8, the University of Delaware's Delaware Diamonds Society hosted an intimate dinner concert for its members in the Roselle Center for the Arts. The University of Delaware Chorale entertained guests with selections from its new holiday CD, “Carols By Candlelight.”
George Watson, dean of the College of Arts and Sciences, introduced the choir, noting the talent within the UD Chorale and their spirit of teamwork.
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“The UD Chorale embodies what the arts set out to do at UD,” Watson said. “These singers bring a level of excellence to the stage but also a commitment to each other and a passion for making music.”
Watson also thanked members of the Delaware Diamonds Society, the University’s premier leadership giving society, for their contributions to the University and to UD arts programs. He extended a special thank you to Donald J. Puglisi, MBNA America Professor Emeritus of Business, for his recent gift of $1 million to support the Department of Music.
Watson’s comments were echoed by Paul Head, director of the UD Chorale.
“I cannot begin to tell you what a difference [your contributions] make in all of our lives,” Head said.
Head was gratified, he said, by the opportunities available to both students and educators at the University of Delaware, where he has taught for the past 17 years and previously served as chairperson of the Department of Music.
“If you can think it in Delaware, and it’s good, and it’s brilliant, somehow it will happen,” he said.
At the event, members of the Delaware Diamonds Society and their guests enjoyed food and drink and heard several holiday favorites, including “I’ll be Home for Christmas” and a modern arrangement of “Jingle Bells.”
In a performance of “Gabriel’s Message,” a carol that originates from the Basque Country in Spain, the choir sang both in English and in the Basque language that composer Sabine Baring-Gould set out to honor with his song.
The Chorale traveled to the Basque region for the International Tolosa Choral Contest in 2010, where it won three second-place awards and one third-place award. During another European trip in 2012, the choir received second-place honors in the Béla Bartók International Choir Competition and Folklore Festival in Debrecen, Hungary.
According to Head, international travel is at the core of the Chorale’s identity, allowing students to compete against some of the best choirs in the world and helping to attract high school students to the University who are seeking a challenging, intellectual choral experience.
“There is nothing like travel,” Head said. “It’s that personal connection with the people that we’re engaging with musically – that’s really special.”
Event guest John Lashbrook, a musician who plays in local rock groups, said he was impressed by the quality of the Chorale’s performance. “I’m thrilled and delighted to be here,” Lashbrook said. “To hear this live – you get tears in your eyes. It doesn’t get any better than this.”
Delaware Diamonds Society member Stanley Hughes agreed, joking that it was unusual to see college students perform traditional music. “I think it was wonderful,” Hughes said. “What a great opportunity for a group of young people to see the world and to be involved with music that’s not rock and roll.”
Hughes attended the event with his wife, Jean Hughes. Stanley and Jean both graduated from UD in 1952 and are members of the University’s Osher Lifelong Learning Institute.
“We are both Delaware graduates,” Stanley said. “It’s really nice to see the University doing something like this.”
About the University of Delaware Chorale
The UD Chorale is among the most highly regarded college choirs in the eastern United States. In recent years, the choir has been invited to perform on both regional and national conventions of the American Choral Directors Association (ACDA). It has also performed at Carnegie Hall in New York and Verizon Hall in Philadelphia’s Kimmel Center for the Arts. In addition to annual regional tours, the Chorale has traveled extensively throughout Europe with appearances in Scotland, Wales, France, Germany, Austria, Finland, Spain, Estonia, Hungary and Greece. The Chorale won three second-place awards and one third-place award at the 42nd International Tolosa Choral Contest in Spain in 2010 and was the runner-up to the Grand Prix at the 25th Béla Bartók International Choir Competition and Folklore Festival in Debrecen, Hungary in 2012.
The “Carols By Candelight” CD is available for purchase in the office of the Department of Music or may be ordered online.
About the Delaware Diamonds Society
Established in 1974, the Delaware Diamonds Society is a recognition society devoted to encouraging exemplary levels of financial support among alumni, parents, faculty, staff, students and friends of the University of Delaware. It pays tribute to those who contribute $1,000 or more annually on a consistent basis.
Photos by Evan Krape