The Bridgewater-Raritan High School choral program presented its annual winter concert on December 15, showcasing a diverse range of compositions to its audience.

Under the guidance of Lisa Rotondi, the Director of the Choral Department at Bridgewater-Raritan High School, each of the multiple choirs practiced repertoire and refined their technique. When the time came for the winter concert, every group was well-prepared to present a breathtaking performance.

“I’m really happy with all of the progress the choirs have made this fall,” Ms. Rotondi shared.

During the concert, several pieces were accompanied by a brilliant pianist, Chris Fortin, who is known for playing improvisations amidst transitions and enhancing every group of singers.

The first batch of the night was the Mixed Choir, composed mostly of freshmen and newcomers with soprano, alto, tenor and bass voices. This group grew from twenty-eight members in the previous year to a staggering seventy-six. 

Their first piece was an adaption of Robert Frost’s Stopping By Woods on a Snowy Evening, musically leading the audience through a beautiful, wintry forest.

Next was Maoz Tsur, one of the most enduring songs of Hanukkah. This arrangement for choir has two sections, combining the traditional harmonies of the original with modern styles in English.

Lastly, they performed a Latin hymn called Veni Veni by Michael John Trotta. It is typically sung during Advent, the season leading up to Christmas observed by many Christian denominations. 

Following the impressive presentation from Mixed, the Select Treble honors choir, made up of soprano and alto singers, stepped into the spotlight.

They first sang Blow Blow Thou Winter Wind, its lyrics stemming from Shakespeare’s play “As You Like It.” An abundance of composers, from Shakespeare’s lifetime to the present, have adapted this text about the merry seasons of life.

Subsequently, the treble voices performed Kuumba by Dr. Zanaida Stewart Robles. Kuumba is sixth out of the seven principles of Kwanzaa and means “creativity.” As Dr. Robles encourages choirs to add their own artistic input, the Treble choir transformed with improvised piano from Mr. Fortin, djembe from Maeve Siddons, and original poetry written and recited by juniors Adrienne Chavez and Laila Acquista. 

Their last piece was an arrangement of Winter Song, an evocative piece including solos from senior Piya Advani and sophomore Maryn Bennett. The original songwriters and performers, Sara Bareilles and Ingrid Michaelson, repetitively ask if love is alive, and the end of this pieces provides the answer: love is alive, here in this room and in our hearts and actions. 

The crowd then welcomed Ensembros, the all-male group consisting of tenor and bass voices. They truly brought the holiday spirit with their jazzy rendition of Carol of the Bells.

Switching gears, the all-female Lorelei Ensemble walked on stage. Lorelei meets weekly after school on Wednesdays and specializes in challenging music for soprano and alto voices. 

They performed two pieces that are both interpretations of old works and well-known in the choral music world, but stray from the average holiday setlist. 

First was Cold December Flies Away, based on the carol “El Desembre Congelat” from the Catalan region of Spain. 

Their second piece, by Canadian composer Sarah Quartel, was an arrangement of “The Huron Carol,” renamed Iesous ahatonnia’ to reflect its First Nations origins. It includes new passages by Wendat poet Andrée Levesque Sioui and is sung in both English and the indigenous Wendat language. This work encourages people to learn from the past and build a better future.

The final choir of the night was Symphonic Choir, the honors-level choir composed of mixed voice ranges.

Ms. Rotondi commented that she was very satisfied with the group’s performances during the Hillside Intermediate School and Eisenhower Intermediate School visits, which took place earlier in the school year.

They opened with The Unexpected Early Hour from a set of pieces known as A Winter Breviary, all by composer Reena Esmail. The Unexpected Early Hour is based off of Ahir Bhairav, an Indian classical raag, which is the equivalent of a scale. It uses an energetic compound time signature, and the raag it is based on is associated with morning hours and the tones of bells. Additionally, the lyrics are correlated to the Christian services of Evensong, Matins and Lauds.

Their second exhibition was Dean Richel’s Hanukkah Scherzo, which layers voices to create a spinning effect and represent a spinning dreidel. A scherzo is a short piece of music, sometimes featured in the middle of a sonata, symphony or other type of larger work.

They ended with a composition by Norwegian composer Ola Gjeilo and poet Charles Anthony Silvestri, titled Tundra. This ethereal piece centers around a place very dear to Ola Gjielo—the mountains in Norway, between Oslo and Bergen. It featured soprano solos from seniors Chloe Lombardo and Maddie Van Dyke. 

The night’s fesitivities concluded with a grand performance encompassing all the choirs combined. 

A four-hand piano accompaniment from Mr. Fortin and junior Anton Fomin joined the singers in Ding Dong Merrily on High by Cincinnati organist Howard Hevley, leaving the audience in a joyous holiday spirit.

Ms. Rotondi remarked that she really enjoyed doing a combined piece with all the choirs to close off the concert, as it is a tradition in many schools.

As for the future of the choral department, she mentioned exciting news.

“There’s a lot to look forward to in 2026, the first event being a visit from TCNJ professor Dr. Nick McBride who is coming to work with Mixed Choir and our visiting 8th grade singers from BRMS. Shortly following that will be Broadway Night and the Festival.”

Furthermore, with the arrival of 2026, choral students are jumping into new repertoire.

“My main goal for the choral department is to build interest and access to our ensembles while elevating the excellence of the choral experience,” Ms. Rotondi commented.