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A Connecticut Holiday Music Tradition Continues This Weekend

In 1990, when five-time Grammy Winner Paul Halley left NYC for the northwest corner of Connecticut, he formed the acclaimed children's choir Chorus Angelicus, and it's adult counterpart Gaudeamus. 

The next year, Halley was ready with the very first Christmas Angelicus, a concert of holiday music by the combined choirs, with readings by actor and storyteller John McDonough. Halley relocated to Nova Scotia in 2007, but the choirs and Christmas Angelicus continue to be a yearly tradition for many in Connecticut and beyond.

For Joyful Noise's artistic director Gabriel Löfvall, the challenge year after year is to balance tried and true holiday classics, while introducing the choirs and audiences to new holiday works. " All year 'round my ears are attentive to things that could work out in Christmas Angelicus," said Löfvall. "We go for a mixture of true and tried, but we also go for arrangements that are very old in essence, but rearranged, repossessed, and rethought."

The 23rd annual Christmas Angelicus gets underway this weekend with performances Friday night in Simsbury, and Sunday afternoon in Torrington. For more, go to Chorusangelicus.com.

Ray Hardman is Connecticut Public’s Arts and Culture Reporter. He is the host of CPTV’s Emmy-nominated original series Where Art Thou? Listeners to Connecticut Public Radio may know Ray as the local voice of Morning Edition, and later of All Things Considered.

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SOMOS CONNECTICUT es una iniciativa de Connecticut Public, la emisora local de NPR y PBS del estado, que busca elevar nuestras historias latinas y expandir programación que alza y informa nuestras comunidades latinas locales. Visita CTPublic.org/latino para más reportajes y recursos. Para noticias, suscríbase a nuestro boletín informativo en ctpublic.org/newsletters.

The independent journalism and non-commercial programming you rely on every day is in danger.

If you’re reading this, you believe in trusted journalism and in learning without paywalls. You value access to educational content kids love and enriching cultural programming.

Now all of that is at risk.

Federal funding for public media is under threat and if it goes, the impact to our communities will be devastating.

Together, we can defend it. It’s time to protect what matters.

Your voice has protected public media before. Now, it’s needed again. Learn how you can protect the news and programming you depend on.