The Lubbock Chorale Holiday Concert is one of the many Christmas traditions in Lubbock. Joining the Front Row to talk about the concert is Dr. John Hollins.
How is the Lubbock Chorale different from other choral organizations?
First of all, we are in our 42 season, so just shy of 3 years ago, we celebrated our 40th, ruby anniversary, and it was a wonderful milestone for the chorale. It has a rich history. It has always been associated with Texas Tech University School of Music from inception as an entity.
But we’re unique in what is called, town and gown, it is a non-profit arts organization and it’s also a course through the university. So some students sing in the chorale for credit. We are 70 percent, or higher, a community art organization. We have a council and a board of directors. We do our own fundraising and grant writing. As such, we kind of wear two hats. We cherish and value our community connections. And We cherish our connections to Texas Tech University.
You have a Christmas concert coming up. Tell us about it.
Friday, December the eighth. We are excited. It the second offering of a sing-along Messiah for the community. We will be performing a Messiah part one, which is the nativity portion, the Christmas portion, plus the hallelujah chorus with orchestra. And the soloists will be performed by scholarship singers in the Lubbock Chorale.
Now the Lubbock Chorale each year provides the 10-16, varying, of scholarships for students in the voice area of Texas Tech University. We are very proud to contribute, in a tangible way, to their educational journey. And in return these fine singers perform as section leaders, an invaluable service to the chorale. We are happy to feature them this year as soloists for the Messiah.
Listen to the full interview at the top of the article.
