Bluffton to present Christmas concert Dec. 2

Bluffton University’s Camerata Singers, University Chorale and Saxophone Trio will headline “A Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols,” the university’s annual Christmas choral concert, at 2:30 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 2, in Yoder Recital Hall.

The program is designed around a historical structure of Scripture readings and Christmas carols. The readings, taken from prophetic writings about the Messiah’s coming and from the Christmas story, are interspersed with various Christmas pieces.

Tickets, $7.50 for adults and $5.50 for senior citizens (65 and over) and non-Bluffton students, are available online at http://tickets.bluffton.edu or by contacting the box office at 419-358-3239. Admission is free for Bluffton students.

Dr. Mark Suderman, a professor of music, conducts Camerata Singers, a select chamber choir, while Dr. Jon Peterson, an assistant professor of music, conducts the University Chorale, a 50-voice, mixed ensemble.

Each of the choirs will perform individual carols, representing a variety of countries and styles. The program will open and close with numbers sung by the combined choirs.

The Saxophone Trio is composed of Dr. Adam Schattschneider, a professor of music; Scott Troyer, a Bluffton senior from Sugarcreek, Ohio; and Chelsey Parker, a junior from McComb, Ohio. The trio will present published pieces arranged by Troyer. One piece will be presented during the concert; others will serve as pre-concert music.

Troyer will also be a reader during the concert, as will juniors Meghan Sager of Ottawa, Ohio; Chris Jennings of Archbold, Ohio; and Meg Leatherman of Hesston, Kan., along with Ron Headings, Bluffton’s vice president for enrollment management and marketing, and Andreas Baumgartner, an assistant professor of art.