Local residents are invited to join Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute students, faculty, and staff for the Institute’s annual holiday concert at 3 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 15. This year’s performance, which will be led by Institute conductor Nicholas DeMaison, is an invitation for people in the campus community and the greater Capital Region community to “Rejoice in This Place!” The concert, sponsored by the Office of the President, will be a celebration of Rensselaer and its world-class performance venue, the Curtis R. Priem Experimental Media and Performing Arts Center (EMPAC).

“Music is very much a part of our history and traditions. At Rensselaer, we believe the blending of voices from many disciplines is the path to discovery — whether in the lab or on the stage — and can lead to delightful moments of insight and awe,” said Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute President Shirley Ann Jackson. “We invite the community to come to hear our magnificent students perform in this magical venue.” 

“The annual tradition of the holiday concert is a wonderful opportunity for members of the campus community to come together with the local community for a musical celebration. This year’s performance promises to be particularly special as it is led by our new conductor and will feature both student and professional musicians performing side-by-side in the unparalleled setting of EMPAC,” said Mary Simoni, dean of the School of Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences.

The 90-minute concert is free and open to the public. Tickets are not required and seating will be on a first-come, first-served basis. Attendees are asked to register online at rpi.edu/about/holiday.

The Rensselaer Orchestra and the Rensselaer Concert Choir will be joined by professional musicians for this year’s event, which is inspired by EMPAC, and features music celebrating ecstatic, joyful places.

Among the selections performed by the Rensselaer Concert Choir will be Anton Bruckner’s Locus iste. Professional musicians will join the Rensselaer Orchestra, including Rensselaer student Kimberly Dolanski, to perform Gustav Mahler’s Das himmlische Leben (A Child’s View of Heaven) from the 1805 collection of German folk songs known as Des Knaben Wunderhorn (The Boy’s Magic Horn).

In the second half of the performance, both the Rensselaer Orchestra and the Rensselaer Concert Choir, as well as the professional musicians, will assemble to present the centerpiece of the concert, Haydn’s Te Deum for Maria Theresa. The concert will close with Handel’s Hallelujah Chorus from The Messiah.

The full program is as follows:

First half:

Performed by the Rensselaer Concert Choir:

• Locus iste – Anton Bruckner
• Ecco mormorar l’onde –  Claudio Monteverdi
• Oh How Lovely is the Evening – Traditional German round
• Das Glaut zu Speyr – Ludwig Senfl
• Hava Nashia –  Johannes Ockeghem
• Haleluya –  Salamone Rossi
• Alleluia – Randall Thompson

Performed by the Rensselaer Chamber Orchestra with professional musicians:

• Das himmlische Leben (A Child’s View of Heaven) – Gustav Mahler

Second half:

Performed by the Rensselaer Orchestra:

• Finlandia – Sibelius
• Hungarian Dances – Brahms
• Pizzicato Polka – Johann Strauss

Performed by the Rensselaer Orchestra, the Rensselaer Concert Choir and professional musicians:

• Te Deum for Maria Theresa – Haydn
• Hallelujah Chorus – Handel