FREEHOLD – The New York Choral Society will perform in concert at the First Presbyterian Church, West Main Street, on Dec. 15 at 7:30 p.m.
Members of the church’s hand bell choir will perform on stage with the choral society.
Tickets for the performance of the New York Choral Society are on sale. Reserved seating tickets are $40 and may be purchased by calling (732) 363-6429. The church seats 530 people.
People can e-mail for tickets at [email protected] or visit the Web site at www.FPCFreehold.org.
Under the direction of John Daly Goodwin, the New York Choral Society has performed in China, the Czech Republic, Israel, Austria, France, Italy and Greece, in addition to cities across the United States.
According to Robert M. DiSogra, chairman of the First Presbyterian Church Music Committee, members of the church are “counting down the days like little kids” until the singers arrive in Freehold.”
The New York Choral Society, founded in 1958, has become known for the quality of its performances and its diverse repertoire. The Dec. 15 concert in Freehold will come five days before the choral society performs at Carnegie Hall, New York City.
The performance at the First Presbyterian Church will feature the choral society’s 100 voices, a seven-piece brass section, guest soloists and a guest organist.
The 2007 performance is the third in a series of Christmas concerts that have been held at the 165-year-old church. The Vienna Boys Choir appeared in 2006 and the Grammy-award winning choral group Chanticleer performed in 2005.
The concert series was created as a way to help pay for church renovation expenses.
“The Dec. 15 program will include an international selection of Christmas music as well as contemporary songs in our sanctuary,” DiSogra said.
The New York Choral Society has appeared with numerous celebrities, including Andrea Bocelli in Madison Square Garden, New York, and Celine Dion at Radio City, New York.
The group has been a featured guest on NBC-TV’s “Today” show. It has performed with countless orchestras, including the American Symphony Orchestra, the New York City Ballet and the New York Philharmonic, and performed at the 1998 Grammy awards.