Suffolk native on PBS
Published 10:00 pm Thursday, December 19, 2013
Suffolk native Christine Comer will appear on the nationally televised “Christmas at Belmont” concert airing Friday on PBS television stations.
Hosted by internationally renowned mezzo-soprano Denyce Graves and taped at Nashville’s Schermerhorn Symphony Center, more than 800 student musicians joined the Belmont School of Music faculty and the Nashville Children’s Choir for the taping of “Christmas at Belmont.”
The annual production of traditional carols, classical masterworks, world music and light-hearted seasonal favorites, produced by Nashville Public Television, will have its nationwide premiere on PBS Friday at 10 p.m., with an encore broadcast Christmas Eve at 8 p.m.
This will be the 11th consecutive year “Christmas at Belmont” has been seen by a national audience on PBS.
This year’s edition of the show features the University Symphony Orchestra, Belmont Chorale, Percussion Ensemble, Musical Theatre, Jazz Band and Bluegrass Ensemble, as well as a mass choir.
The performance includes both classic sacred holiday music such as “Ave Maria” and “My Lord Has Come,” as well as festive seasonal songs such as “Go Tell It On the Mountain,” “On This Winter’s Night” and “We Need a Little Christmas,” to name a few.
“‘Christmas at Belmont’ is an amazing opportunity to showcase Belmont University’s world-class School of Music in front of a national audience,” said Belmont University President Bob Fisher. “We’re incredibly grateful that this partnership with NPT puts our talented students and faculty in living rooms across the country.”
“We’re always thrilled to bring Nashville to the nation, and the ‘Christmas at Belmont’ production is one of the finest examples of this,” said Beth Curley, president and CEO of NPT. “Belmont’s School of Music is world class, exemplary of the city’s dedication to music and performance in all of its forms and genres. ‘Christmas at Belmont’ is always magnificent and a highlight of PBS’ holiday programming.”