Celebrate your Christmas with Bel Canto Vocal Music Series
Celebrate your Christmas with Bel Canto Vocal Music Series
JAKARTA (JP): Although Christmas is still nine days away, many
people have already planned to celebrate it in grand style.
If you are after classical music to get you in that holiday
spirit, a concert dedicated to Christmas will be presented at The
Dharmawangsa Hotel by the Perhimpunan Persahabatan Indonesia-
Amerika (PPIA) International Choir.
The choir will be accompanied by the Erasmus Brass Ensemble,
conducted by Brian Everett.
The Indonesian Children's Choir and Youth "Cordana" Choir,
conducted by Aida Swenson, will also be appearing.
The concert will begin at 7:30 p.m. and features two soloists
from Aida Swenson's Children Choir, Bernadeta Maitri Astari, 12,
and Ludmila Martha, 10.
Bernadeta will sing O Holy Night and Ludmila from Yogyakarta
will sing The Holy City, White Christmas and Mary's Boy Child
delivered in her personal style.
The concert will begin with a procession of the Children's
Choir and will end with The Youth Choir singing And the Glory of
the Lord from Messiah.
Founded in 1967 by the Indonesian-American Friendship
Association, the PPIA International Choir is composed of
Indonesian and expatriate singers who have been performing
western and Indonesian musical repertoire for three decades.
Its initial performance consisted of American and Indonesian
folk songs often accompanied by the Jakarta Symphony Orchestra.
Its conductor, Brian Everett, who studied music at the Trinity
College of Music in London, has been a member of the choir for
five years as a singer and associate conductor.
Aida Swenson is the founder and director of the Indonesian
Youth Choir-Cordana. The daughter of well-known music composer A.
Simanjuntak, she studied music from Rudy Laban at the Jakarta
Music Education Foundation, the National Council of Churches in
the States and the World Council of Churches in Geneva. She
received her degree in church music and choir from Westminster
Choir College, Princeton, USA.
The concert is part of The Dharmawangsa's Bel Canto Vocal
Music Series 2000/2001.
Those who want to sing or join the PPIA International Choir or
Indonesian Children's Choir can call 8316808 for more
information.