Syriana Etheart: Attending Annual Christmas Carol Concert (2-3 points)

  On December 7th, I attended Spelman and Morehouse’s annual Christmas carol concert at King’s Chapel. I was really excited because I heard that the concert is a very well-known tradition, and I wanted to see the glee clubs perform. Additionally, I wanted to support one of my honors sisters who is a part of the club as well. 

The entire performance was beautiful. I found myself in awe of the layering of vocals and the entire production of the concert. I additionally loved how, during transition periods, they incorporated an interactive aspect for the audience where they got to sing along. I could tell a lot of time and preparation went into this performance. From the movements/dances, transitions, and vocals themselves, it was an inspiring and well-thought-out show. Going into the concert, I didn’t really know what to expect. I knew there would be Christmas carols sung, but I was pleasantly surprised to hear less mainstream songs. I think my favorite songs sung were “We are Christmas”, “Glory to God in the Highest”, and “This Christmas”. A majority of the songs sung pertained to the Biblical significance of Christmas. I believe this aligns with Spelman and Morehouse’s background of being Christian schools. Another aspect that stuck out to me during the performance was the incorporation of African drums. I love how these drums significantly added to the atmosphere of the performance and really grounded the audience. I also loved how it was a very public example of the incorporation of Black culture; it goes to show how Spelman and Morehouse strive to acknowledge the roots of African-descendant people. 

Overall, the concert was beautiful. I had so much fun listening to the beautiful voices of Spelman and Morehouse students harmonizing. This performance definitely reminded me how much I truly appreciate the arts. I definitely want to push myself to attend more performances (especially those of the glee club) and even begin exploring my own creative pursuits. Attending the Christmas carol definitely added some magic to my first year at Spelman, and I will be sure to attend next year as well!