Candlelight Carols at Muhlenberg

This past weekend, the Muhlenberg College Choir and Chamber Singers performed at the annual Muhlenberg Advent Candlelight Carol Worship service in the Egner Chapel. The service included traditional Christmas carols, such as “Silent Night” and “Joy to the World,” and featured the recitation of nine Biblical lessons that are called to mind around the holiday season.

Reverend Callista Isabelle, Muhlenberg College Chaplain, presided over the event, and the Cardinal Key Society acted as ushers. There were torch bearers, crucifers, and participation from the Muhlenberg Flute Ensemble. Students ranging from freshmen to seniors were involved, and this active student involvement was prevalent in every aspect of the performance. Dr. Margaret Hanegraaf, Interim Director of Choral and Vocal Activities, conducted the show, and part-time Lecturer and voice teacher Ed Bara assisted in arranging the performance. The nine lessons were taken from the Old and New Testaments, and were recited by students, faculty members including President John I. Williams, Jr., and members of the Catholic Campus Ministry. The Reverend Carolyn Albright, 1983 Muhlenberg alumni from Ripple Church in Allentown also participated in the presentation of the lessons, along with Reverend Tom Lichner of the Allentown Christ Lutheran Church.

Preparation for the Candlelight Carols has been ongoing for the past several weeks, and the result was beautiful. The chapel was illuminated by twinkling Christmas lights entwined with evergreen wreaths, and the late sunlight softly lighting the stained-glass windows completed the peaceful atmosphere. The choirs were dressed in long blue and red robes, and the ensemble dancers who, during the songs, illustrated the stories of Christ and the Virgin Mary, were clad in red robes.

The evening was a celebration of togetherness and worship, with the audience being invited to join in singing with the choir for a few of the songs. The repertoire included songs in Spanish, Latin and Korean, and the College Choir and Chamber Singers alternated in their performance of each number while joining together for three of them. During “The Service of Lights,” the audience members were given candles to illuminate the darkened chapel during the choir’s performance of "Silent ing but blindoblivion. Andeven oblivion must endsomeday….to return what was given. For the sake of prisoners andthe flight of birds.” Ending finally with the thoughts, “Lord, what can the harvest hope for, if not for the care of the reaper man?”(this is from the book “The Reaper Man”) Death, who speaks in all caps throughout the tales of Discworld, is a servant to the rules of the universe. There is a movie version of the one of these Discworld stories that is actually a parody of our own Christmas—Hogswatch. The film is called Hogfather and I encourage you to try and watch it. The witness and the ever presence depictions of death share many commonalities. However, there is a distinct line drawn between the two. In regards to the witness, I refer to the The Book Thief, by Markus Zusak. In this medium, death serves as the narrator of the story, telling his observations of a young school girl living in Nazi Germany. Through the “eyes” of death, and the thoughts of Liesel Meminger, we gain a new perspective of life and the slow step-by-step descent into World War II. Here is where the line between the witness and the ever presence is drawn. As the witness possesses a sense of meaning or reason, and a means of expressing motivation, the ever presence does not. The ever presence comes in various mediums and in many ways expresses itself through reality. It is not a character we can call out to, or an opposing figure we Night,” and the choir members themselves circled the pews through the wings holding candles of their own. The event was incredibly well-attended; while tickets were free, every seat for the show had been filled for weeks. Jose Cruz ‘18 attended the open dress rehearsal last Friday. “As an avid musician,” he said, “I’m sometimes overly critical of performances: hearing for harmonies that don’t sound correct, finding that one person who’s slightly out of tune, etc. Because of this, I usually prefer attending open dress rehearsals because the atmosphere is relaxed enough that the performers don’t feel as much pressure, don’t feel as nervous and sometimes perform better. Candlelight Carols was a great performance! It had its minor open dress rehearsal issues, but there were also stand-out songs like “Salvation is Created” and “Lully Lula Lullay” whose performances had me fighting back tears in the middle of the chapel.” This year’s Candlelight Carols performance was a tremendous success. The service was full of passion and confidence, with each singer presenting their prayers for peace and serenity with all their hearts. There’s nothing quite as satisfying as ending a semester on such a high note!