After tearing her ACL for the second time in a high school softball game, Sara Morey’s dream of being a professional athlete came to an end. Although she would no longer play sports after her serious knee injury, Morey’s ACL tear allowed her to focus on another skill: music.

Now a choral conducting graduate student in Syracuse University’s Setnor School of Music, Morey is in her sixth straight year with the Hendricks Chapel Choir and currently serves as its teaching assistant and assistant conductor.

After she attended the Holidays at Hendricks concert as a freshman, Morey wanted to get involved with the annual holiday celebration. This year’s Holidays at Hendricks concert is scheduled for Dec. 6 at 7:30 p.m.

Holidays at Hendricks features performances from multiple groups, including the Hendricks Chapel Choir, Syracuse University Singers, the SU Brass Ensemble and others. However, this year’s concert will be reaching into the Syracuse community to include some new acts. Members of the Syracuse Children’s Chorus and the Syracuse Vocal Ensemble will be included in this year’s festivities.

Peppie Calvar, assistant director of SU choral activities, director of the Hendricks Chapel Choir and director of Holidays at Hendricks, believes that the involvement of non-university community members sends an important message.

“It is important for us to keep our eyes on the fact that we are members of a larger community that doesn’t exclusively consist of people on this hill,” Calvar said. “So I think that the more goodwill that we can foster from people in other parts of the community, the better we’ll do in all things.”

This year, world-renowned composer Daniel E. Gawthrop composed the piece “The Longest Night” for the Hendricks Chapel Choir, another new addition to the festivities.

The choir is somewhat of an anomaly because it contains such a large amount of non-music majors, said Veronica Ortiz, a senior television, radio and film major and the president of the Hendricks Chapel Choir.

“What’s really cool about Hendricks Chapel Choir is maybe only one third is music majors. The rest — you would be really surprised — maybe engineering or some are from ESF,” Ortiz said.

Students can take Hendricks Chapel Choir as either a one-credit or zero-credit class, and all members spend a significant amount of time rehearsing together.

Despite their different interests and backgrounds, Morey said that all members come together to form a close-knit atmosphere.

“There’s just this feeling of family within this choir, and I’ve never been in a choir before that has this love in it before and I’m not sure I ever will,” Morey said. “There’s just this magic amongst the choir that everybody respects each other and has this beautiful connection with each other.”

The event is free and open to the public and the event organizers turned away prospective audience members in the past because of a full chapel. Calvar said it’s the holiday spirit that keeps the crowd coming back.

Said Calvar: “I leave this performance every year ready for the holiday season whereas before it, it’s doldrums, and it’s very Scrooge-like, and then we have Holidays at Hendricks and I’m ready for the holidays.”

Published on December 2, 2015 at 9:45 pm

Contact: slgozins@syr.edu