Everything Nac

Celtic music all the way from Ireland will signal the opening of the Christmas holiday at Stephen F. Austin State University when the College of Fine Arts presents a special performance of the internationally acclaimed professional ensemble Danú at 7:30 p.m. Friday, Dec. 16, in W.M. Turner Auditorium on the SFA campus as part of its 2016-17 University Series.

Danú will celebrate the festive season at SFA with “Féile Na Nollag” (A Christmas Gathering). Celtic music lovers around the globe have been thrilled by Danú’s virtuoso players on fiddle, flutes, button accordion and percussion as well as the gorgeous voice of Nell Ní Chróinín, performing along with top-notch guest dancers, according to Scott Shattuck, associate dean for the College of Fine Arts and the director of the University Series.

“This concert will be a yuletide treat for the entire family,” Shattuck said. “Tickets to this event would make a unique and welcome gift for anyone.”

Hailing from historic County Waterford, Danú is one of today’s leading traditional Irish ensembles. Their standing-room-only concerts throughout Ireland are spectacular events, featuring high-energy performances and a glorious mix of ancient Irish music and new songs, according to Shattuck.

“Danú takes its audiences on a musical journey to their native Ireland, offering a thrilling and memorable concert experience,” Shattuck said.

Among the selections to be performed during this concert is the Irish version of “Silent Night,” known in Irish Gaelic as “Oíche Chiúin.”

“‘Silent Night’ is a song that is known the world over,” Shattuck said. “Danú will perform it in the Irish language followed by the English version with the audience invited to join in and sing along.”

Winners of numerous awards from the BBC and Irish Music Magazine, Danú has toured throughout much of the world with stops at The Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles, Symphony Space in New York City, and major concert venues in the United Kingdom, India, Israel and across Europe. To learn more about Danú, visit www.danu.net.

This performance is sponsored in part by NMC Health Network (Nacogdoches Medical Center).

Prior to the performance, Dr. Rick Jones, professor of theatre and interim director of the SFA School of Theatre, will present an informative talk about Irish culture at 7 p.m. in Griffith Gallery. The gallery is located across the hall from Turner Auditorium, which is located in the Griffith Fine Arts Building, 2222 Alumni Drive. The audience is invited back to the gallery for a post-performance reception to meet the performers and to honor the event’s corporate sponsor.

Single event ticket prices are $25 for adults, $20 for seniors and $10 for non-SFA students/youth. Tickets for SFA students are $3.

Other upcoming University Series performances include Seraph Brass Quintet on Jan. 24 and Olga Vocal Ensemble on Feb. 2.

For tickets or more information on the 2016-17 University Series, visit finearts.sfasu.edu, stop by the Box Office in Room 211 of the Griffith Fine Arts Building, or call (936) 468-6407 or (888) 240-ARTS. All performances are at 7:30 p.m. in Turner Auditorium.

The Piney Woods Camerata at Stephen F. Austin State University will present a holiday concert featuring SFA harpist Emily Mitchell at 1 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 4, in Cole Concert Hall on the SFA campus.

The ensemble is made up of string faculty and students at SFA with Geneva Fung, staff accompanist, as harpsichordist.

The concert will feature mostly Baroque concertos that are also Christmas concertos, composed especially for the season, according to Dr. Jennifer Dalmas, associate professor of violin and viola and ensemble member.

“Christmas concertos differ from other concerto grossos in that they contain a gentle ‘pastoral’ movement that evokes the shepherds’ tale from the Christmas story,” Dalmas said. “The other piece featured is the popular Harp Concerto by Handel, with soloist Emily Mitchell.”

George Frideric Handel’s Harp Concerto in B flat major is considered a staple in the harp repertoire, Dalmas said.

“It is a wonderful showpiece for the soloist,” she said. “It follows the typical fast-slow-fast movement structure of later concertos and contains charming and memorable melodies.”

Other program selections feature Christmas concertos by Italian composers Arcangelo Corelli, Giuseppe Torelli, Pietro Antonio Locatelli and Francesco Manfredini. Of these, the best known is Corelli’s, which may be familiar to the audience.

“The other concertos, though less known, are delightful examples of concertos from this time period with their polyphonic textures and beautiful tone colors,” Dalmas said.

The concert is a presentation of the SFA College of Fine Arts and School of Music and is a feature of the Cole Performing Arts Series. Cole concert Hall is located in the Tom and Peggy Wright Music Building, 2210 Alumni Drive.

Tickets are $8 for adults, $6 for seniors and $3 for students and youth. For tickets or more information, call the SFA Fine Arts Box Office at (936) 468-6407 or (888) 240-ARTS or visit www.finearts.sfasu.edu.