Sing Hallelujah!

Three times is clearly a charm. The Evanston Symphony Orchestra welcomes for the third year in a row to its Holiday Concert the popular Evanston Symphony Holiday Gospel Choir led by Rev Ken Cherry. The choir will once again sing a gospel version of Handel's Hallelujah Chorus at the Dec. 10 concert at 3 p.m. at Evanston Township High School. The ESO in 2015 commissioned the orchestration of this piece, with funding from the Evanston Arts Council, so this performance and piece are uniquely and specially Evanstonian!

Also on the program, the Gospel Choir will perform with the ESO The Temptations' arrangement of Silent Night. You won’t want to miss it.

The holiday offers something for everyone. Traditional carol lovers will rejoice in Anderson's Sleigh Ride and Wendel’s classical adaptations of The Little Bolero Boy and We Three Kings. And who doesn’t treasure the Evanston Children’s Choir, who will sing Ding Dong! Merrily on High, Carol to the King and Waltz of the Snowflakes? Another annual Holiday Concert performer is the Evanston Dance Ensemble, who will dance scenes from The Nutcracker, and bring back the adored tap-dancing version of Rudolph, The Red-Nosed Reindeer.

One of the highlights of the program each year is Handel’s Hallelujah Chorus, to be performed by the Gospel Choir, ESO, North Shore Choral Society and Evanston Children’s Choir. As a special treat this year, soprano soloist Julia Davids, artistic director of the North Shore Choral Society, will sing some of the work.

Some pieces become new traditions, and the gospel version is fast becoming a fan favorite. The spirited, six-minute Hallelujah song is from the 1992 gospel album Handel’s Messiah: A Soulful Celebration, a contemporary reinterpretation of Handel’s acclaimed 1741 classic conceived and put together by multi-award winner Quincy Jones. Soulful Celebration won the Grammy Award for Best Contemporary Soul Gospel album.