Ringing in the Holidays

ZANESVILLE, OH – The holiday season is upon us, and two upcoming musical events will offer the community a chance to get into the spirit of the season.

All the way from Vienna, Austria, the Vienna Boys Choir is set to bring Christmas to Zanesville. The choir, which is the modern-day descendant of the Viennese Court Boys’ Choir, has been around since 1924 and is making a return to the States this month.

Jim McLaughlin, the booking agent for the Zanesville Concert Association, expressed his excitement for the upcoming performances.

“On Friday of this week at Secrest Auditorium we have the Vienna Boys Choir here, this is a return performance. We’re 85 years old so we have had this group three times before so this will be the fourth appearance. We’ve never had a Christmas concert from them,” McLaughlin said.

The “Christmas in Vienna” concert will take place at 7:30 p.m. on Friday at Secrest Auditorium, with doors opening at 7:00 p.m. The concert is not the only musical event set to start the holiday season in Zanesville. On Sunday the 33rd annual Zanesville Handbell Festival is also taking place.

“The Handbell Festival will be this upcoming Sunday at 7 o’clock at Grace United Methodist Church,” said Ann Briggs, the Handbell Director at Grace UMC. “There will be 6 handbell choirs from local churches coming together to do mass ringing, everybody playing at the same time, and then each choir will do 2 pieces on their own before we come back together and do the mass ringing again.”

Youth aged 18 and under, as well as college students with a valid campus ID, are granted free admission to the “Christmas in Vienna” concert. The Handbell Festival, which is sponsored by the Thursday Music Club, is also free to attend, although donations are accepted.

For ticketing information, please visit the Zanesville Concert Association website.