Provided by the Woodbridge Flute Choir
Woodbridge, VA (October 29, 2014) – The Woodbridge Flute Choir (WFC), directed by Debbie Gilbert and assisted by Lisa Sheldone, will present its annual Holiday Concert on Saturday, December 6, 2014 at 3:00PM at Greenwich Presbyterian Church in Nokesville, VA.
Featured guest harpist Cambria Van de Vaarst will perform Vivaldi’s Concerto in D Major RV93. This piece was originally written for lute, two violins and continuo but has been arranged for harp and flute choir by Melvin Lauf, Jr. Ms. Van de Vaarst will also play harp with the flute choir in arrangements of the holiday classics The First Noel and Il Est Ne called Nr. 1 Noel and Charmingly Perfect Child, both written by Jackson Berkey. She will also join the choir in Alexandra Molnar-Suhajda’s original composition for flute choir called Autumn Vespers.
The choir will also perform Teresa Meeks’ arrangement of Alleluia by Randall Thompson and Wexford Carol, arranged by Ann Cameron Pearce. Two jazzy holiday arrangements by Peter Senchuk titled Santa’s Second Line and Kinda Blue Xmas round out the program.
The concert will benefit “Farthest Corners,” a non-profit organization based in Nokesville and Thailand that provides humanitarian, medical, spiritual and educational assistance to the displaced people of Burma. Admission to the concert is free but a free-will offering will be taken for Farthest Corners to purchase medical kits, rice and other necessary items for refugees along the Thailand/Burma border.
About the Woodbridge Flute Choir:
The Woodbridge Flute Choir, directed by Debbie Gilbert and assisted by Lisa Sheldone, has 25 members who play flute, piccolo, alto flute, bass flute and contrabass flute. Since its inception in 1996, the WFC has presented a regular concert series in Northern Virginia and has performed at charitable and gala events, Flute Society of Washington events, and flute choir festivals. The Choir has performed at the Kennedy Center and the White House, and most recently was invited to perform at the 2011 and 2013 National Flute Association Conventions. As part of its mission to educate its members and the Washington area flute community, the Choir has sponsored masterclasses and performed with internationally acclaimed flutists such as Per Oien, John Barcellona, Tadeu Coelho, Chris Potter, Alexa Still, Thomas Robertello, Aaron Goldman, and piccolo soloist Nan Raphael. In recognition of the need for new music written specifically for flute choir, the WFC has commissioned and presented world premieres of original works by Gretchen Morse, Nancy Wood, Lee Larsen, Mel Lauf, Jonathan Cohen, Alexandra Molnar-Suhajda, Russell Nadel, and Greg Lutz. The group has produced four commercial CDs – Butterfly, Woodbridge Suite, Passages and A Silver Christmas. All are available for download either on CD Baby, iTunes, or through amazon.com. For more information about the choir, its upcoming concerts and its recordings, please visit www.woodbridgeflutechoir.org.
Debbie Gilbert, the artistic director, resides in Broad Run, Virginia near Warrenton and holds a B.M.E. from Louisiana State University. She has taught private flute lessons to youth and adults for over 25 years. She is currently the principal flutist with the Piedmont Symphony Orchestra and a seven-time winner in the National Flute Association’s annual Professional Flute Choir Competition. Currently she serves as president of the board of directors of the Flute Society of Washington.
