USA, California, Santa Cruz, A Gaelic Christmas Concert

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Redwolf
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USA, California, Santa Cruz, A Gaelic Christmas Concert

Post by Redwolf »

Mary Mc Laughlin's fourth annual "A Gaelic Christmas" concert will be held in two venues this year: Friday, December 18, at 8:00 p.m., at Holy Cross Catholic Church in Santa Cruz, CA (that's the big white church on the hill, for anyone who's ever been to Santa Cruz), and Saturday, December 19, at 3:00 p.m., at St. Andrew's Presbyterian Church in Aptos, CA (just south of Santa Cruz). The program features original choral arrangements of Christmas music, mostly in Irish (we do have a couple of English numbers, as well as one in Latin, to give you all a "brain break" from non-stop Irish), and it's a nice mixture of traditional Irish carols (many of which may be unfamiliar to Americans) and familiar European carols (in Irish), with a couple of original songs and one 13th Century Gregorian chant thrown in for good measure. We'll be joined this year by harper Steve Coulter and flute player Lars Johannesson (who will play some traditional sets on their own, in addition to accompanying the choir), and by the outstanding woman's World Music ensemble "Zambra" (who will also sing a song in Irish, as well as songs from England and Scotland, a shape-note selection from The Sacred Harp, and a gorgeous traditional Sephardic Jewish song from Spain).

We're headlined, of course, by the wonderful Irish singer Mary Mc Laughlin, who is also the founder of the Cór Ainglí Irish choir, and the arranger of most of the music.

And yes...shameless self-promotion time! Yours truly will be singing in several the small ensembles, as well as in the choir.

This is really a terrific concert. We've sold out for the past three years (even last year, when we moved from 70-seat Calvary Episcopal Church to 400-seat Holy Cross!). If you want to come, and have a choice as to when, I'd recommend coming to the Holy Cross concert on the 18th...not only is the church itself incredibly lovely, the acoustic is to die for (performers from all over the area fight tooth and nail to gain access to Holy Cross for their concerts). I'd also recommend coming early, to get the best seats, though that's less of a factor this year than it has been in years past. St. Andrew's is quite a bit smaller (and a bit off the beaten path), so if you plan to come to that one, definitely come early. Anybody who needs them can feel free to PM me for directions to either church.

We're moving back to the "suggested donation" model this year (it's so much of a pain to do ticket sales in Santa Cruz, as you have to estimate and pay tax on your income before you sell a single ticket...then either file a claim or pay additional tax based on your actual income after the concert. Bleh!). We're asking $15 for general admission; $12 for senior citizens or children under 16 (The concert isn't advised for really young children...too young to sit through a two-hour concert without going crazy or driving the adults around them crazy).

For more information, visit www.marymclaughlin.com and www.zambra.com

Redwolf
...agus déanfaidh mé do mholadh ar an gcruit a Dhia, a Dhia liom!
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Re: USA, California, Santa Cruz, A Gaelic Christmas Concert

Post by Redwolf »

Here's a bit more about Mary, and about the concert, published in today's Santa Cruz Sentinel:

http://www.santacruzsentinel.com/localnews/ci_14015483
...agus déanfaidh mé do mholadh ar an gcruit a Dhia, a Dhia liom!
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Re: USA, California, Santa Cruz, A Gaelic Christmas Concert

Post by Redwolf »

And finally, if you missed the concert, it can now be viewed on-line at http://www.communitytv.org/

Redwolf
...agus déanfaidh mé do mholadh ar an gcruit a Dhia, a Dhia liom!
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