That’s how I would describe tonight’s Kauai Chorale concert—never has there ever been a sing-along concert on the island of Kauai where a sold-out audience sang so loudly and enthusiastically, accompanied by a real pipe organ. And did they ever raise the rafters and sing their hearts out!

The concert opened with Dan Forrest’s celebratory setting of “Come, thou long-expected Jesus,” sung to the tune HYFRYDOL, for choir, congregation, organ, two trumpets, cello and sleigh bells, followed by the Carl and Katherine Crosier arrangement of “Adeste Fideles.” I have to confess I was thinking about Carl when we performed it tonight, even though it has been 38 years ago that we struggled to come up with a new arrangement of the familiar carol. You might be interested to know—we fought over every single chord, so I would say that half of the chords were his and the other half were mine! That’s what you call a real collaboration!

The Chorale sang several contemporary arrangements of carols, including Light the Advent Candle (Davenport, arr. Wagner), Lift up your Heads (Kampen), Blest Be the Star (Willcock), Carol of the Magic (Rutter), and Carol of the New Year (Tennyson; Helvey).

Everyone joined in for more audience carols: It came upon a midnight clear, O little town of Bethlehem, The first Noel, and Joy to the world. I played alternate harmonizations to spice things up a little, and added Wilbur Held’s setting of Joy to the World as a coda to the audience hymn, including throwing on the Zimbelstern at the end!

My student, Daniel Welch, and I played a piece for viola and organ by Adolphus Hailstork plus a fiendish organ duet arrangement of George Frederic Handel, For unto us a child is born from Messiah. We closed the concert with a duet arrangement of the Hallelujah Chorus, with everyone standing and singing their hearts out.

Oh, and in the middle of it all, I played Olivier Messiaen’s Dieu Parmi Nous, to which Morris wrote in the program, Ahh, hold onto your seat! and described “Kathy’s gymnastics on the organ bench!” Ha ha! My only gymnastics were only trying to play the right notes! He also included in the program the cartoon about the Altar Guild hiding until the organist had finished practicing Messiaen!

I was pleased to meet Daniel Welch’s siblings and grandparents at the concert!

What a joyful night!