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Handel’s Messiah Sing-Along Comes to Clinton


Mississippi College presents "Messiah Sing-Along."

Over the years, groups like the New York Philharmonic, the Mormon Tabernacle Choir and the Choir of King’s College in England have performed George F. Handel’s “Messiah.”

Written in 1741, “Messiah” will be the musical centerpiece of a holiday season concert at First Baptist Church Clinton on December 7.

The “Messiah Sing-Along” in Clinton will unite the Mississippi College Singers with area church choirs and an orchestra along with other talented Mississippians blending their voices. People from Central Mississippi who have sung “Messiah” before are invited to participate.

The 5 p.m. concert that Sunday evening is among the special events of the celebration of the strong partnership of Mississippi College and its hometown of Clinton. Mississippi College President Lee Royce, Clinton Mayor Phil Fisher and other local leaders are expected to be in attendance.

Milburn Price, visiting professor of choral music at Mississippi College and former dean of the School of the Performing Arts at Samford University in Birmingham, will serve as the concert conductor.

Choirs are coming from First Baptist Church Clinton, Morrison Heights Baptist Church in Clinton and elsewhere in metro Jackson. The event is free and open to the public.

The program will include the Christmas portion of “Messiah,” with MC students singing the recitative and aria sections. “Having the event on the first weekend of December helps to start the Christmas season events in Clinton and on the Clinton campus,” says Angela Willoughby, who chairs the MC Music Department.

“Everyone is invited to come and listen or sing,” adds Willoughby, who will play the harpsichord at the “Messiah” performance.

Choir participants will be seated in the lower section near the front pews of the church sanctuary. Audience listeners are invited to sit in the balcony for the best possible sound, Willoughby said.

Mississippi College, the Department of Music and City of Clinton are teaming up to make this event a wonderful way to begin the holiday season and celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ.

For more information, contact Dottie Serio at the MC Music Department at 601-925-3440 or serio@mc.edu.