New York, NY (Top40 Charts) Christmas Fantasia, held annually at one of the most admired venues in
Orange County, the Renee & Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall, Costa Mesa, CA
Our annual Christmas
Fantasia concerts have become the perfect opportunity to recognize outstanding students from within our academic and performance programs.
"Christmas Fantasia," Vanguard University's annual festival of sacred and popular Christmas music, will be performed December 4 and 8 at two
Orange County venues. The concert, presented by Farmers & Merchants Bank, will feature nearly 200 students from the University's award-winning choirs and instrumental ensembles, and award two students with the prestigious Ralph Carmichael Scholarship Award—named in honor of the legendary Vanguard alum, and composer and arranger for Nat King Cole.
"Our annual Christmas
Fantasia concerts have become the perfect opportunity to recognize outstanding students from within our academic and performance programs," said Dr.
James Melton, professor and chair of music at Vanguard University.
The Ralph Carmichael Scholarship Award was established in honor of the famous composer and arranger who studied music at Vanguard University - the first four-year college in
Orange County. Carmichael graduated and went on to write arrangements for top performers including Ella Fitzgerald, Bing Crosby, and Stan Kenton, while serving as musical director for I Love Lucy. The scholarship in Carmichael's name was awarded to two recipients in 2014, both music and worship studies majors at Vanguard University.
"I was extremely overcome by the generosity of the anonymous donation and gift, which ended up being the exact amount I needed to pay off my upcoming spring semester school bill," said Christine Correa, one of the students awarded last year, and the first in her family to attend college. Correa was also one of four students to receive the
National Hispanic Christian Leadership Award last year.
Each year, students from Vanguard's reputable department of music bring classic works to life, such as Handel's Messiah and Tchaikovsky's The Nutcracker Suite. Performances at the Renée and Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall and St. Andrew's Presbyterian Church will feature Vanguard's Concert Choir, Orchestra, Women's Chorus, Jazz Ensemble, Guitar Ensemble, Barbershop Quartets, and the Vanguard Singers and Band.
Christmas
Fantasia 2015 schedule:
Friday, December 4, 2014, 8pm
St. Andrew's Presbyterian Church, Newport Beach
Tuesday, December 8, 2015, 8pm
Renée and Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall
