A Holiday Letter...

Today we received this delightful message from Jonathon Caparso of Boylston, regarding his experience at this year's annual performance of Handel's Messiah on December 4, 2010:

My name is Jonathan and I first attended a performance of Messiah in 1996. As an extra credit requirement for my Baroque Music Study class in my junior year of Providence College, I was required to attend a Baroque performance and write a review. I remember being awestruck that evening by the whole performance: the crisp voices and sounds of the many different string instruments, the perfect acoustics of Mechanics Hall, and the sheer length of the piece. I was hooked. Since that year, I have attended every performance. I believe that one year it was postponed and one year it may have even been cancelled due to weather. I have seen many great performances, but never have I experienced one quite like last week.

I've heard that in live performances when the audience presents prolonged applause for an extraordinary performance, it is customary for the cast to perform an encore. In rock concerts this happens all the time, but in my 15 years of watching Messiah, this was a first for me. It was exciting and exhilarating to sing with such a great chorus and orchestra. And to be asked to sing one of the most acclaimed biblical choruses of all time was truly a "once in a lifetime" experience.

For this I would like to thank whomever was responsible for extending me that honor.

Please keep up the tradition of offering great performances in such a great venue.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year