To celebrate the Christmas season the City of Derry Orchestra, the University of Ulster Choir and Derry’s Classical Music Society have joined forces to produce a concert of glorious seasonal and traditional music that perfectly captures the spirit of Christmas.

This festive Christmas Concert will be performed in the Diamond, University of Ulster, Coleraine, the Millennium Forum, Derry and An Grianan Theatre, Letterkenny. 

The Christmas Concert in Coleraine will feature excerpts from Handel’s Messiah and a selection box of favourite Christmas Carols for all the family to enjoy, including Away in a Manger, Joy to the World and Once in royal David’s city.

Choirs from Macosquin, St John’s and St Malachy’s Primary Schools, Coleraine will join in the festivities to sing some of the carols with the University Choir at the Coleraine concert. 

The combined skills of a distinguished troupe of talented professional artists will contribute to a performance that promises an evening of Christmas cheer.

Performing in Coleraine will be the international soloists Una Carlin and Rosa Solinas.  Derry-born soprano, Una Carlin, recently left her full-time position with English National Opera to pursue her freelance career again.  Rosa Solinas (mezzo soprano) trained at conservatoires in her native Italy before moving to the United Kingdom.  She has sung various operatic roles, notably that of Carmen, and has given numerous solo recitals. 

Carita Kerr is the narrator for the concert.  Carita is a classically-trained singer, actor and teacher of speech and drama.  Her many operas include L’Elisir d’Amore, Faust, and Carmen where she played the lead role.  Her concert repertoire includes lieder, sacred songs, negro spirituals and songs from the shows. 

The narration for the concert has been written by an Award-winning theatre director and writer, Mark Westbrook, who trained at the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama and is now a Lecturer in Drama at the University of Ulster.

The conductor for the evening will be Cormac Newark who joined the University of Ulster in April this year as a Lecturer in Music in the University’s new Performing Arts Centre in Derry.  He studied orchestral conducting at the École Normale de Musique in Paris.  While still a student he formed a chamber orchestra that has toured extensively in France, performing in Paris and representing the United Kingdom at the European Festival of Youth Orchestras. 

The Christmas Concert in the Diamond, University of Ulster, Coleraine will take place at 7.30pm on Thursday 9 December.  Tickets cost £7.00, concession £5.00, children and students £4.00. There is also a family ticket available at £17.00.  Tickets can be purchased in the Cultural Development Office, Coleraine campus.  For further information telephone: 028 7032 4449.

For further information, please contact:

David Young
Telephone: 028 90366074
Email: David Young