A variety of holiday music is on tap for Tuesday, Dec. 2 at the Criss Christmas concert in historic Lee Hall on the Mississippi State University campus. The Starkville-MSU Symphony Association presents this free annual extravaganza featuring the Symphony Orchestra Brass at 7:30 p.m.
Dr. Michael Brown, professor of music at MSU conducts the performance which includes Thomas Beversdorf’s “Cathedral Music” and two selections from the St. Mark’s School of early 17th century Venice.
The brass quintet will perform Christmas favorites like “Jingle Bells” and “We Wish You a Merry Christmas.” Jazz aficionados will enjoy a nine-piece jazz band rendering light holiday classics.
Dr. Gary Packwood, director of Choral Activities at MSU, conducts the MSU State Singers and a double brass quintet in Daniel Pinkham’s “Christmas Cantata.” The Brass Choir returns to the stage to conclude with a suite of Old American Christmas folksongs and a set of traditional carols the audience will be invited to sing along with.
There is no charge to attend, thanks to individual supporters, corporate and institutional contributors and grants. The Criss concert is sponsored each year by donations to the Symphony Association and the Lyceum Committee at MSU from the Criss Foundation. The event is a joint project of the Symphony Association and the Lyceum and has become a holiday tradition.
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