CONWAY, Ark. (November 12, 2021) – For more
than six decades, the Hendrix College Choir’s Candlelight Carol Service has signaled
the start of the Christmas season for many throughout Arkansas and the broader Hendrix
community. The 2021 Candlelight Carol Services will continue this beloved
tradition with some pandemic-related modifications for in-person attendees,
plus two nights with a streaming option.
Greene Chapel will once again host the
on-campus services Dec. 2-4 at 7:30 p.m., with an invitation-only service Dec. 5
at 4 p.m. Reservations for the Dec. 2-4 services open Monday, Nov. 22 at https://bit.ly/HDXcandle2021. (The link will not be active until that
day.)
This year, the choir will make tour stops
Thursday, Dec. 16 at Lakewood United Methodist Church of North Little Rock
(1922 Topf Road) and Friday, Dec. 17 at Trinity United Methodist Church of
Little Rock (1101 N. Mississippi Street). Both tour services begin at 7:30 p.m.,
with no reservations needed.
All performances are free and open to the
public, though reservations are required for the on-campus services because of
limited seating. Continued pandemic protocols for the Hendrix campus require an
attendance limit of 50% capacity for Greene Chapel and masking for those who
attend. The two churches serving as tour stops also will have masking in
effect, but no limits on regular seating capacity.
In-person attendance is not the only
option for those wishing to experience the Hendrix College Choir Candlelight
Carol Service. The service will be streamed live from Greene Chapel on the Hendrix
College Facebook page on
Friday, Dec. 3 and Saturday, Dec. 4.
After a covid-19 hiatus for in-person
services necessitated an online-only, pre-recorded Candlelight Carol Service in
2020, the College is grateful that the 2021 service will return to live
performance, with familiar songs of the season and more recent compositions
that convey the same message in new ways.
“We are especially grateful this year for
the ability to honor this long-running tradition that connects generations of
alumni to Hendrix,” said Dr. Andrew Morgan, conductor of the Hendrix College
Choir. “The choir is excited to get back into Greene Chapel and out on tour to
share this service that marks the beginning of the holiday season for so many
people.”
The Candlelight Carol Service at Hendrix
shares many features with the Festival of Lessons and Carols celebrated each
Christmas Eve since 1918 at King’s College in Cambridge, England. The nine
lessons, taken from Old and New Testaments, weave a narrative from Adam’s fall
into sin, through the prophecies of Christ’s coming, and culminating in
Christ’s birth. The carols performed between the lessons change yearly, and
offer opportunities for reflection, exultation, and celebration. Selections for
this year’s service include a new descant and organ harmonization by Sir
Stephen Cleobury (1948-2019) for Once in Royal David’s City; I Lift Up My Eyes, a setting of Psalm 121 by Jocelyn Hagen
(b. 1980); and A Christmas Lullaby by Edmund Jolliffe (b. 1976), among
others.
About
Hendrix College
A private liberal arts college in Conway,
Arkansas, Hendrix College consistently earns recognition as one of the
country’s leading liberal arts institutions, and is featured in Colleges That Change Lives: 40 Schools That
Will Change the Way You Think About Colleges. Its academic quality and
rigor, innovation, and value have established Hendrix as a fixture in numerous
college guides, lists, and rankings. Founded in 1876, Hendrix has been
affiliated with the United Methodist Church since 1884. To learn more, visit www.hendrix.edu.