Wintersongs: A Night of Community and Holiday Music

LOGAN, Utah — Utah State University Choirs will combine their talents to present the annual Wintersongs concert, featuring timeless music of the season on Dec. 5 at St. Thomas Aquinas Parish in Hyde Park.

Cory Evans, director of choral activities, said the passion the students have for music is tangible.

“They really just pour their heart and souls into this,” Evans said. “Come and start your season off with some of the most beautiful music you’ll hear.”

Evans said Wintersongs is a celebrated tradition in Cache Valley.

“We’ve done this concert for 22 years,” Evans said. “I have people all the time stop me in the grocery store, people who I may not know, and they’ll say, ‘When is your Wintersongs concert? We never miss it.’”

The concert has taken place in various locations throughout the years, but when St. Thomas Aquinas Parish was built in Hyde Park, Evans knew it would be a perfect setting for the performance.

“All of a sudden, we could do a concert in a cathedral-type setting with a beautiful organ and candles and bells,” Evans said. “It was beautiful. It was exactly what I imagined this to be.”

In addition to the Wintersongs performance, St. Thomas Aquinas Parish has also served as the location for USU Choirs album recordings.

“The Chamber Singers has recorded multiple albums. Some of them have been eligible for Grammy nominations,” Evans said. “The space is just so conducive to recording and beautiful sounds. They are so generous to host us.”

This year’s performance will have a unique opening, different from the traditional candlelight procession.

“One of our grad students Mitchell Kakura has written an opening piece. It’s called ‘Past Three O’Clock,’” Evans said. “We’re bringing in a streetlamp that I’ve made, and it will feature a lamp-lighter that will light the lamp as part of the song. It’s enhancing this traditional candle ceremony that we usually do to start.”

The concert provides a meaningful and unique way to kick off the holiday season.

“It’s a time of year where people feel the need to gather and hear beautiful music,” Evans said. “You will be saturated with cheesy stuff on the radio all season long, but this is different, and I think it provides, for a lot of people, a good foundation for what the season may mean to them.”

The music captures the spirit of togetherness, offering a moment for reflection and connection.

“Wintersongs represents the warmth of humankind and the coming together and the sharing of who we are,” Evans said. “It all just makes for a great evening.”

The concert will be performed at 6 and 8 p.m. and is free to the public. Donations to the program will be welcomed. The concert will be recorded for broadcast on Utah Public Radio; the ages recommended to attend are 8 years old and up. For more information, visit the online calendar.