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.