BETHLEHEM, Pa. — Rejoice in the sounds of the holidays.
From student-led concerts to community choruses, there are several performances that celebrate Christmastime in the Lehigh Valley.
Here are some:
Merry at Central Moravian
When: Sat., Dec. 7 at 1:30 p.m.; doors open at 1 p.m.
Where: 40 W. Church St., Bethlehem.
Admission: The performance is free.
Central Moravian Church will present an Advent and Christmas concert that will feature choral and instrumental music to welcome the holiday season.
The concert will open with an organ prelude, “Let All Mortal Flesh Keep Silence/Of the Father’s Love Begotten,” arranged by the church's minister of music, Rebecca Lepore.
"We hope this gift to our community will help spread the message of God’s love through music and word."Rebecca Lepore, Central Moravian Church
Lepore also will perform "Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy,” “Walking in the Air” and “Skater’s Waltz” on Central Moravian’s Möller Opus 8650, with its four manuals, 109 ranks and 3,057 pipes.
“Central Moravian Church is happy to open its doors and invite the Lehigh Valley and visitors to Bethlehem to enjoy carols and fellowship as we prepare for the busy Christmas season,” Lepore said.
“We hope this gift to our community will help spread the message of God’s love through music and word.
"Our annual concert will be even more meaningful this year, as we join together in a historic church recently listed with worldwide Moravian Church Settlements, as a UNESCO World Heritage site.”
Central Moravian’s choir also will sing “Morning Star in Darkest Night” by Georg Friedrich von Hellström, a Dutch-born Moravian composer, organist and violist who served the Moravian congregation in Christiansfeld, Denmark — also part of the Moravian Church Settlements listed as a UNESCO World Heritage site.
The choir will also perform “Festival Nowell” by American composer Dan Forrest. It will conclude with an organ and brass arrangement of Samuel Scheidt’s (1587-1654) “In dulci jubilo," which is Latin for "In sweet rejoicing."
Muhlenberg's Advent Candlelight
When: 7:30 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 7, 33:30 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 8 (The evening service also will be livestreamed.)
Admission: Free, but registration suggested at the Muhlenberg website.
Muhlenberg College's 67th Advent Candlelight Carol services, presented by Egner Memorial Chapel and the college's music department, will include adaptations from the Festival of Lessons and Carols of King's College, Cambridge University.
The concerts will celebrate the spirit of the Advent season with music and scripture, and will feature solo performances by student musicians, both vocalists and instrumentalists, curated by faculty from the music department.
Holiday cheer at Charter Arts
When: 7 p.m. Dec. 16.
Admission: $12 adults, $7 students/children
The Charter Arts Vocal Music Department's winter choral concert will feature traditional holiday songs performed by nearly 200 student musicians made up of three of the school's choirs.
Additionally, instrumental students from the school will hold a winter concert at 7 p.m. Dec. 20. Tickets are $12 adults, 7 p.m. students/children.
Both performances will be in the school's theater at 321 E. Third St., Bethlehem.
Finding 'hope' with Lehigh Valley Chorale
When: 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. Dec. 14.
Admission: Tickets, starting at $10 are available at the chorale website.
The Lehigh Valley Chorale, founded in 2016, will hold its "Where Hope is Found" concerts at the Miller Symphony Hall, 23 N. Sixth St., Allentown.
The performances — a set list of holiday favorites such as Donny Hathaway's "This Christmas" and Hugo Blanco’s “Mi Burrito Sabanero," hope to inspire attendees to look for sources of hope even in times of darkness.
The concerts will close with the premiere of Lehigh Valley artistic director, Nicholas Sienkiewicz’s “Where Hope Is Found."
Holiday Pops! with the Symphony
When: 2 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. Dec. 21
Where: Miller Symphony Hall, 23 N. Sixth St., Allentown
Tickets: $25-$74, at Miller Symphony Hall website
Allentown Symphony's annual "Holiday Pops" concert will feature Christmas classics, sing-a-long opportunities and a visit from Santa Claus.
Led by conductor Diane Wittry and vocalist Michael Andrew, this year's guest stars include Camille Zamora on vocals and student performances by El Sistema Lehigh Valley Choir, Parkland High School Chorale and dance performances by the Accent School of Dance and Lehigh Valley Salsa Social Group.
Christmas with Bach
When: 4 p.m., Saturday, Dec. 7
Where: First Presbyterian Church, 3231 W. Tilghman St., Allentown, and 4 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 8 at First Presbyterian Church, 2344 Church St., Bethlehem.
Tickets: $9-$45, also available to stream for $25, information at the Bach choir websitet.
The Bach Choir's annual holiday program will consist of Bach's cantata BWV 1, "How Brightly Shines the Morning Star," and new work by composer Kile Smith, inspired by the Bach Choir's Moravian roots.
Smith’s "The Consolation of Apollo" blends the1968 Apollo 8 broadcast with sixth-century reflection from Boethius.
The Bach Choir, which consists of 95 volunteer singers, celebrated its 125th year in 2023.
The group was founded by John Frederick Wolle in 1898, nearly 150 years after Bach's death.
Wolle was an organist at central Moravian at a time when Bach was tied to the singing tradition of the Moravians.
Candlelight Celtic concert
When: 7 p.m. Dec. 15.
Where: 6600 Jacksonville Road, Bath
Tickets: $20 for non-members, $15 for members at 610-737-3000 or gwhs1958@gmail.com. Reservations are recommended; seating is limited.
You can warm up at the Gov. Wolf Historical Society's holiday event, which will feature classic Celtic Christmas songs provided by local group, Piper's Request.
The band will perform a mix of Celtic and seasonal songs. There will be a dessert buffet and light refreshments served.
Tickets will be available at the venue Dec. 7 and 8 during the holiday history event
Yuletide happenings at Zoellner
Zoellner Arts Center has three holiday performances lined up, including a free performance of the Lehigh University Christmas Vespers at 4 and 8 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 8.
The longstanding holiday show combines two traditional forms of worship in the Moravian Church — the singstunde and the candlelight service and is directed by Sarah Frook Gallo and associate director, Liz Olson.
The concerts will take place in Packer Memorial Church, 18 University Drive, south Bethlehem.
The King's Singers, an a cappella singing group known for spreading Christmas Cheer, will perform at Baker Hall, 420 E. Packer Ave., Bethlehem.
The concert will be at 7:30 p.m. Dec. 20. Tickets start at $35, $28 for students.
Also at Baker Hall: Cherish the Ladies, an Irish American beloved holiday group, will bring its Christmas tour to Zoellner.
The show will feature a medley of new and old Irish songs, lively jigs and dancing.
The performance will take place at 4 p.m. Dec. 22.
Tickets cost $45 for adults, $41 for ages 60 and older and $36 for students.
