Up & Coming Weekly

8 UCW DECEMBER 9-15, 2009 WWW.UPANDCOMINGWEEKLY.COM Over the past several years, magic has happened downtown during the Downtown Alliance's annual Carriage Rides With Santa. "Downtown is beautiful this time of the year," said Dr. Hank Parfi tt, of the alliance. "All the lights are in the trees and a lot of the stores are decorated. It's kind of magical." To add to that magic is the sound of horses hooves clipping down the streets of downtown. Pullin a vis- a-vis or "Cinderella-style" carriage, the horses make the rounds through downtown with none other than good old St. Nick at the reigns. "You should see the expression on the kids' faces," said Parfi tt. "It is just wonderful. It's so much fun not only for the families who are taking the carriage rides, but also for the volunteers who are working the event." "Santa will be driving the horse-drawn carriage," continued Parfi tt. "So that really adds to the excitement. He leaves the reindeer back at the North Pole, but he trains with the horses for Christmas Eve. It gives the kids a sense of what it's like to be in the sleigh on Christmas Eve." The event has been ongoing each Christmas season for the past fi ve or six years. It started in conjunction with the fi rst Dickens' Christmas. Parfi tt said the two events lend themselves to each other. "It's a really unique experience," he said. "There's nothing else like this going on in the surrounding communities." He noted that the the ride is 10-minutes in length and encompasses the core of downtown. He said the carriage holds four to eight people, so you can either bring a group or make new friends as you make your round downtown. "It's usually cold, so everybody bundles up close. There's a lot of laughter," he said. In addition to the laughter, there's also more magic. Over the past several years, a number of young men have used the carriage ride as an opportunity to propose to their girlfriends. "The fi rst engagement occurred at the very fi rst Dickens' Holiday," recalled Parfi tt. "Last year and the year before, we had at least two engagements." If you have something like that in mind, you can rent the carriage for a solo ride for just $30, otherwise, the cost is $5 per person. Rides are scheduled for Saturday, Dec. 12 and Sunday, Dec. 13 and again on Saturday, Dec. 19 and Sunday, Dec. 20 from 2-9 p.m. To schedule a ride, go to 222 Hay Street, where you can schedule a ride for later in the day or wait for your ride. "Most people come early and schedule their rides for later in the afternoon and then they spend some time downtown shopping, having dinner or drinking hot chocolate or coffee," said Parfi tt. For more information, call the Downtown Alliance at 222-3382. Carriage Rides With Santa Make Magic Downtown by JANICE BURTON The Cumberland Oratorio Singers will perform George Frideric Handel's Messiah during a free concert scheduled Dec. 12 beginning at 4 p.m. at the Holy Trinity Episcopal Church. Michael Martin, director of Choral Activities and Music Education at Methodist University and COS artistic director, leads and conducts the 18-year- old group of approximately 70 singers based out of the Fayetteville church. The repertoire is divided into two portions, the first of which is more seasonal than traditional Christmas music. "It's called a Christmas concert, but we're really trying to represent more of a holiday theme. So we have a spiritual; we have a Hanukkah piece; we have some seasonal pieces associated with the holidays," Martin said. "For the second portion — which is the primary portion of the concert — we're doing the first part of Messiah. The Messiah is really an Easter piece in total, because it really follows the passion of Christ from birth to death." Messiah is divided into three parts. The first part being the story of Christ's birth; the second part chronicling his life and death; the last part celebrates his resurrection. "The first part works great for Christmas obviously, but the interesting thing is that the "Hallelujah Chorus" — which everybody knows (and usually hears) at Christmas time — isn't part of the first part. So we have to sing the first part and we just kind of put the "Hallelujah Chorus" in it," Martin said. Martin hopes this and future performances will attract new performers to the group and he welcomes new singers to COS rehearsals. "I meet every single new singer one-on-one. We do a little voice placement. We run some scales privately and I hear the person's voice," Martin said. "I really try and keep it very, very light. I don't really envision this group as being an audition group. I would like to have this group become so large that an audition group comes from it." Anne Knight, 84 and the eldest performer of the group, recalled her first rehearsals when she joined the group as it was being formed in 1991. "I couldn't follow the music to save my soul," Knight remembered. "I said (to the singer beside me), 'Tell me something. How is it that you can follow this music so easily and I'm having such a hard time?' 'Oh Anne,' the singer replied. 'I have a five-year degree in music. But don't be intimidated. You stay right here'" And stay she did. Knight, along with a handful of others, has been performing with the group since its formation. Juanita Norman, 74 and another original member, expressed what brings her back year after year and why she invites others to the performances. "This is something each year that brings people closer together," Norman said. "And if you don't have the Messiah, you don't have anything." Messiah Is Highlight of Oratorio Concert by DAN RANGEL Michael Martin conducts a Cumberland Oratorio Singers' rehearsal held Nov. 30 at the Holy Trinity Episcopal Church.

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