Holiday caroling is a longstanding tradition in Whatcom County, with new groups popping up regularly.
Seasoned vocalists - as well as amateurs whose primary stage is their shower or their vehicle (yes, people see you singing in their cars) - can again join the fun this year.
People in the vicinity of Fairhaven on Christmas Eve the past few years have undoubtedly heard and seen the crowd gathered at the Village Green. The flash mob-style band of carolers was begun by Christine Perkins, assistant director of Bellingham Public Library.
Perkins grew up in New Canaan, Conn., where caroling has been a tradition in the town square for more than 90 years. Community members there gather every Christmas Eve to sing the same songs in the same order.
"It was a really nice way to launch into Christmas and have some good memories with family," Perkins says. "When I first moved here and saw the Fairhaven Village Green, I said 'That would be a perfect place for doing Christmas Eve caroling.'"
Along with her friend Andrea McMillan, Perkins reserved the space and began inviting friends and neighbors via email and Facebook. Nearly 100 people showed up the first time in 2009, and about 200 gathered last Christmas Eve.
Perkins and McMillan plan to make it an annual event, and invite everyone to show up by 8 p.m. Dec. 24 to sing and play instruments. Song sheets and candles are handed out that evening, and songs will be available on the Facebook event page, "Christmas Eve Carol Singing," ahead of time.
Everyone is welcome, without regard to age or musical ability.
"This is not a performance," Perkins says. "It's a participatory event."
LYNDEN CAROLING
People who enjoy caroling while on the move can join members of the Lynden Performing Arts Guild at 5 p.m. Dec. 10 in front of Clair vg Thomas Theatre, in downtown Lynden. Last year's caroling attracted about 15 people and was judged a success despite less wassailing and more sloshing than expected due to rain.
"We wanted to do an event that was more about the community that anyone could join in," says Chelsea Vukovich, the guild's board president. "Little kids, grandparents and everyone in between can participate."
Victorian costumes are provided for the carolers, who will visit local businesses as well as circle through a couple of residential areas.
Lynden Performing Arts Guild plans a 2 p.m. matinee of "The Christmas Toy Shop" at the theater prior to caroling that evening. For more details, see clairevgtheatre.org.
CAROLING NONSTOP
Members of another group, the Nonstop Christmas Carolers, are holding true to their name as they march ahead following last summer's departure to France of founder Walter Michalak.
Michalak started the group in Bellingham four years ago to bring old-fashioned caroling to the community. He developed an instructional CD and songbook called "Sing We Now of Christmas" as a way to teach people how to sing a cappella Christmas carols by learning individual parts as well as how to sing in a chorus. The materials are still available at nonstopmusique.com.
Wearing period costumes courtesy of Louise Sager of Ferndale, the dozen or so carolers perform several annual public performances, and visit retirement homes and other facilities where people can't get out to see live entertainment.
"It's so touching to go and see the residents sing along and get tearful," says Nancy Button, who fronts the local jazz group Stirred Not Shaken and has been with the Nonstop Carolers since the beginning. "Christmas is such a powerful memory for people, of times spent with their loved ones. It's just as touching for those of us who get to do the giving as much as those who listen to it."
While there was some apprehension after Michalak left, a new musical director was recently found for the group, freeing up Button to coordinate the group's schedule of events.
"Things are falling into place," she says. "Everything's lining up like it's meant to be."
WHERE TO LISTEN
People who prefer listening to holiday songs indoors can enjoy several concerts this December:
• Bellingham Chamber Chorale, directed by Ryan Smit, presents "Laud to the Nativity" at 3 and 7:30 p.m. Dec. 3 at Christ the Servant Lutheran Church, 2600 Lakeway Drive. The concert also features seasonal choral works from the Renaissance to modern times.
"We've chosen a repertoire for these concerts that showcases the full range of Bellingham Chamber Chorale's artistry and the beautiful, intimate acoustics of Christ the Servant church," Smit says.
Tickets are $15 adults, $12 seniors, students, and $5 for those 18 and under. Details: bellinghamchamberchorale.org.
• At 3 p.m. Dec. 11, Whatcom Chorale presents its annual Christmas concert, "Tidings of Comfort and Joy," featuring Menotti's "Amahl and the Night Visitors," at Bellingham High School.
Some chorale members have been singing with the group for nearly 25 years, says Garland Richmond, board president. The group, led by artistic director and conductor Deborah Brown, presents three concerts a year; December, March and May.
The chorale sometimes performs with the Whatcom Chorale Sinfonia, made up of local and regional musicians, many of them affiliated with Whatcom Symphony Orchestra, Western Washington University or other instrumental groups.
CHECK OUR CALENDAR
For information about holiday concerts, caroling and other community events, read Take 5 in The Bellingham Herald each Thursday, and see The Bellingham Herald's online events calendar.
