Provided by Woodbridge Community Choir
This year Woodbridge Community Choir celebrates their 50th Anniversary Christmas concert season. Founded by the late Mrs. Lillian Erotida Gaskell in 1966, the Woodbridge Community Choir (WCC) remains an entirely volunteer organization with members from all walks of life. There are no auditions to join. The only requirement is that you love to sing. The choir includes many professional and amateur musicians, both choral and instrumental, in its membership. Most members live in Prince William County, some commute from Stafford and Fairfax Counties, and there have even been some from as far away as Fredericksburg, Richmond, and Charlottesville. The musical directors, accompanists, and soloists are also volunteers and have included some of the area’s leading musicians.
Perhaps most noteworthy about WCC is that all of their concerts are presented free to the public at the Dr. A.J. Ferlazzo Auditorium in Woodbridge, Virginia. WCC is partially funded by grants from the Prince William County Arts Council and support from area businesses and patrons.
WCC has appeared at a variety of venues over the years, including the Kennedy Center, the Ellipse, the Pavilion in Washington, D.C., the National Museum of the Marine Corps – Quantico, Stonebridge at Potomac Town Center, Town of Occoquan, and for the Potomac Nationals singing the National Anthem. One of the highlights in their history was a live performance on NBC’s Today Show with Willard Scott in December 1986.
For this special 50th Anniversary concert, Woodbridge Community Choir reached out to all former directors to participate. Ann Witty and Judy Humphrey, as well as their current director, Lee Irwin Culbreth, have agreed. Each will conduct segments in which they select, prepare, and direct their own individual portions, making for a very diverse program. Samples of all of the music selections have already been posted on the WCC website.
There is still time to register. WCC always welcomes new singers and instrumentalists. Rehearsals for the Christmas concert begin on Monday, August 29. For questions about registration or WCC in general, please visit woodbridgecommunitychoir.org.
