Chorale finds comfort and joy in community

Published 12:30 pm Tuesday, December 2, 2025

Don’t be fooled by the title of Vashon Island Chorale’s upcoming holiday concert, “Night of Silence.”

The concert, to be performed at Vashon Center for the Arts at 7:30 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 13, and 3 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 14, will be anything but hushed, and instead filled with seasonal, soulful and soothing works by American and British composers.

“Our central theme is togetherness,” said Gary D. Cannon, now steadfastly in his 18th season as the Chorale’s conductor and artistic director. “Music can help to imbue in all of us — singers and audiences alike — a spirit of camaraderie and mutual support.”

Cannon, who is one of Seattle’s most versatile choral personalities, active as conductor, singer and musicologist, has named the Chorale’s concert after Oregon composer Naomi LaViolette’s “Night of Silence” — an achingly beautiful composition with lyrics by poet Amy Hawkins that acknowledge the loneliness and grief felt by many during the holiday season.

Still, according to Cannon, “Night of Silence” also suggests hope and renewal in dark times. “When I first encountered this piece, it touched me in a way that very few contemporary works do,” he said.

In its call to find solace by reaching out to others, “Night of Silence” also reflects the Chorale’s own welcoming and inclusive spirit, he said.

In its 36-year history, its membership roster has grown to more than 150 singers who participate as their schedules allow. The 70 singers for this concert range in age from teenagers to nonagenarians.

One of the Chorale’s most undisputed stars? Islander June Langland, who at age 94 has been a Chorale member for the past 35 years. And while she holds court with a broad smile in the first row of the soprano section, other singers who have only recently discovered the delights of the Chorale are smiling, too.

“No auditions are necessary: It’s ‘Come one, come all,’” said Cannon. “We have had singers who were professional opera stars, and some who have never sung in a choir before.”

At a recent Tuesday evening rehearsal for the concert, the diverse mix of voices filled the pews of Vashon Presbyterian Church’s sanctuary, with Cannon conducting and cheerleading the group from a platform placed in the center of the church’s chancel, near the pulpit.

Laughter rang out frequently as Cannon clowned and coaxed the choir through its paces.

“What can you do so you don’t run out of breath?” he called out to the singers after leading them in stretching exercises at the beginning of the rehearsal — an oft-repeated simple question the singers were ready for.

“Take a breath!” the sopranos, altos, tenors and basses all shouted back, in unison.

Soon, the room was filled with heavenly harmonies — but Cannon, pretending to be peeved, still heard something missing.

“I’m not completely convinced you were bouncy and joyous there,” he mock-scolded the singers, after stopping one song midway. More laughter ensued, and when the Chorale members resumed singing, sure enough, their quotient of joie de vivre had risen exponentially.

Cannon’s aim is to elicit a similar feeling in concertgoers — with two chances for the audience to sing along to seasonal favorites.

The rest of the concert’s repertoire, he said, will also amplify the theme of finding joy in togetherness.

In addition to LaViolette’s “Night of Silence,” the work of two other Northwest composers will also be represented, as well as major American voices such as Eric Whitacre and Stephen Paulus, whose “Hymn to America,” said Cannon, “expresses our love of country.” Other works by living Americans will celebrate the wider world by incorporating South Asian elements: one, a Tibetan prayer; another, an Indian raga.

There will also be contemporary seasonal works by major British composers including Sally Beamish and James MacMillan, and arrangements of popular carols by Bob Chilcott and Sir John Rutter.

Soloists include Richard Person, John de Groen and Marcella Seager. Linda Lee, the group’s accompanist since 2011, will be onstage at the piano.

Find out more and get tickets to the concert in person at the VCA box office or online at vashoncenterforthearts.org. Tickets for youth ages 18 and younger are free; those 12 and younger must be accompanied by adults. To learn more about Vashon Island Chorale, visit vashonislandchorale.org.