Cantata rehearsals to start up soon

With cooler weather and even some snow on the horizon, Diane Maxey already is thinking about the holiday season—and that means the Christmas cantata.
Those interested in singing in this year’s cantata are encouraged to come out to a listening session next Monday (Oct. 15) at 7 p.m. at St. Mary’s Church.

“It’s another pretty one,” Maxey said of the cantata, entitled “Silent Night! Holy Night!”
“It’s a new one—we haven’t done it before,” she noted. “But nobody needs to be frightened about it, it’s not difficult.”
Maxey stressed participants are not required to be able to read music, just to want to sing.
“We’ll start with the listening session so those who are interested can come out, hear the music, and get started,” she explained.
Cantata participants will be required to pay a small fee (probably about $15) to get a book and CD, which they’ll be asked to listen to for a few weeks before the cantata rehearsals actually start.
Maxey said the cantata itself is scheduled for Sunday, Dec. 9 at 3 p.m. at St. Mary’s Church, with a second performance in International Falls on Dec. 16 (time and location to be announced).
“Former singers, please come back and any new ones who are interested, please come out,” she pleaded, stressing male singers are especially needed.
“It’s been wonderful,” Maxey enthused of past years. “The sound of the choir has been superb.”
Maxey also said she looks forward to directing the cantata each year.
“This, for me, is Christmas,” she remarked. “I think it brings so much joy to the community.
“It’s something that I’ve been doing for a long time and I just can’t stop.”
She added she believes both participants and the audience also look forward to the cantata—and she does it for them.
“I know the choir loves to sing and the people [watching the performance] really seem to enjoy it,” she noted.
“As long as that’s still happening, we’ll continue, but we always need new people to join us.”
Maxey stressed all are welcome, including teenagers, if they have a love of singing.
“It’s not a long commitment, only a few weeks, and it really starts off the Christmas season in a beautiful way,” she reasoned.
Anyone with questions can contact Maxey at 274-7309.