Staples upholds several customs and rituals but few constants are as well received as the Candlelight Concert: a local barometer for holiday cheer and spirit.
Staples students continued this tradition on Friday evening by crooning a slew of Christmas classics with a mix ranging from Staples staples like “Sing We Noel” to Hebrew hits like “Ose Shalom.”
“I really have a love for for the music like a lot of people,” Simon Ginsberg ’16, a member of the orchestra, said. “But the whole process makes me realize how talented all of the groups at Staples are.”
The groups performed between intervals of roaring applause. While the chorus jumped from classic to classic, the orchestra and band eased from arrangement to arrangement: some well-known and others obscure. The events culminated in an original, small musical story entitled “Gotta Save Christmas!” performed by the A Capella Choir.
“Every year it’s different because the groups change, the people change, people graduate,” Jack Norman ’17 commented on the performance. “But that’s what makes it unique.”
After the chorus, chorale and orchestra finished off with “Hallelujah” and the crowd finished off with a minute-long standing ovation, Adele Cutrali-Valovich stepped up to make an announcement.
“Candlelight is a gift to our students, our school, our community,” she said. “And we’d like to cordially invite you to the next one.”
With that, a banner celebrating next year’s 75th Candlelight Concert was unveiled and the crowd cheered once more.
