M. Kate West
Chester Editor
11/18/2009

    The award-winning Chester Community Chorus will present three concerts in the Lake Almanor Basin the first weekend in December.
    Titled “We Wish You a Merry Madrigal,” the concert will include a wide selection of holiday music from pop to classical, according to publicity chairwoman Trina Woods.
    Among the musical selections to be performed are “A Musicological Journey Through the Twelve Days of Christmas,” “We Wish You a Merry Madrigal,” “Go, Tell it on the Mountain,” “The Little Drummer Boy,” “Jazz Gloria,” Mozart’s “Ave Verum” and “The Majesty and Glory of Your Name.”
    Woods said other special numbers include an Estonian carol and a carol from the Philippines.
    She said the chorus, the chorale, The Kindred Spirits women’s group, The New Gen children’s group and the Lake Almanor Handbell Ensemble would perform for the audience.
    All concerts are open to the public. Although there is no charge for the performances, donations are appreciated.
    The evening performances are scheduled for Friday and Saturday, Dec. 4–5, at 7 p.m. The closing afternoon performance is set for Sunday, Dec. 6, at 3 p.m.
    All performances will be held at the Chester Community United Methodist Church on Main Street (Highway 36), at Glenwood Drive, in Chester.
    For more information about the upcoming concerts or the Chester Community Chorus call Trina Woods at 259-2551 or Elsie Wesley at 284-1750.

Director Elsie Wesley
    Music director Elsie Wesley comes from a background that includes academic as well as musical instruction. Experienced in the field of music production, she is a native of the Philippines.
    She first became involved with music when she began piano lessons at age eight.
    “It was a continuous lesson that didn’t stop until I earned my bachelor’s degree in music education in 1974,” she said.
    Wesley, who was hired in October 2006, participated in three months of on-the-job training. At the completion of her local familiarization program in January 2007, she picked up the baton as the official director of the Chester Community Chorus.