The ninth annual 蜜桃传媒 Christmas Festival, 鈥淧repare the Way,鈥� features music spanning 600 years celebrating Advent and Christmas Dec. 6-8 at First Presbyterian Church. Tickets, which are $25 each and support the 蜜桃传媒 Choir鈥檚 tour to Russia in spring 2014, are still available for the special benefit performance on Saturday, Dec. 7, at 3 p.m. Tickets can only be purchased online at: . For more information, please contact the 蜜桃传媒 Music Department at (805) 565-6040.
The festival has become one of the most popular holiday events in Santa Barbara, selling out each of three performances the past eight years. Tickets quickly sold out for this year鈥檚 three performances Dec. 6-7 at 8 p.m. and Dec. 8 at 3 p.m. This is the first year the 蜜桃传媒 Music Department has added a Saturday matinee fundraiser.
This year鈥檚 festival theme, 鈥淧repare the Way,鈥� speaks to three perspectives of the Christian experience. 鈥淭here is the Old Testament prophetic voice calling us to make the path ready for Messiah, which naturally leads to the story of the Christ child,鈥� says Michael Shasberger, Adams professor of music and worship and festival director. 鈥淭hen, there is the call of John the Baptist to prepare for the coming of Jesus and his ministry among us. In the present day there is the call to prepare for the second coming of Christ.鈥�
The music and readings of the festival will celebrate and proclaim all three modes of preparedness. 鈥淭raditional carols of the season will be intertwined with historic and contemporary choral masterpieces performed by the 60-piece 蜜桃传媒 Orchestra and 100 combined voices of the 蜜桃传媒 choirs,鈥� Shasberger says.