Choristers uplift the Christmas spirit with music

Intermountain Catholic

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The choristers of The Madeleine Choir School perform A Ceremony of Carols by Benjamin Britten at the Cathedral of the Madeleine, conducted by Melanie Malinka Dec. 19. ?We practiced for about three days, one hour a day,? said The young Puoy, a chorister in the fifth grade. Puoy said her favorite carol is ?This little Babe.? IC photo by Priscilla Cabral

SALT LAKE CITY — The Choir of the Cathedral of the Madeleine and the choristers of The Madeleine Choir School keep music in the Christmas celebration. This year, they performed its Christmas Carol Service and Benjamin Britten’s A Ceremony of Carols.

"It’s not the traditional Christmas carol," said Tori Piersante about Britten’s work.

"This is the prettiest one. It’s unusual and hauntingly beautiful," said Terese Pratt.

"The choristers are amazing. They have beautiful, pure voices," said David Luna, who has made coming to the choristers’ free concerts a holiday tradition.

A Ceremony of Carols was composed on board ship during a perilous five-week crossing of the North Atlantic during World War II as Britten returned to England from the United States, said Joanna Wheelton, director of advancement for the Madeleine Choir School.

"It is written in old English and it was especially composed for children voices and the harp," she said.

The fact that the work was composed during a time of hardship and during the months of March and April (far from being Christmas) in 1942, shows "the timelessness of the piece and the season," said Wheelton.

"I feel uplifted," said Piersante at the end of the concert.

"The choristers are affecting people in ways they don’t even know," said Pam Pea, marketing and events specialist for the school.

"They don’t know they’re healing," she said.