Christmas concerts will play at church
West Acres Baptist Church will be the site of two Christmas concerts this weekend.
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Contemporary Christian singer and pianist Mark Schultz will make a stop at the Evans church on Friday as part of the "How Many Kings" Christmas tour.
The performance also will feature the Christian band Downhere and rising artist Alli Rogers.
The musicians will perform several traditional Christmas songs, including God Rest You Merry Gentlemen, Silent Night , Angels from the Realms of Glory and We Wish You a Merry Christmas, said Rob Nordan, associate minister of music at West Acres.
"It's a nice, comfortable, laid-back sort of Christmas program," Nordan said.
Schultz is well known by those familiar with Christian music for his hit song Letters From War, which is about a soldier writing from the battlefield during World War II, Nordan said.
The concert starts at 7 p.m.
General admission tickets cost $20 in advance, and $25 or $30 at the door, depending on seating. Group tickets can be purchased in advance for $15.
After concert expenses are paid, proceeds will go toward a fund to establish a Columbia County arts and cultural center, Nordan said.
A second musical performance will take place on Sunday at West Acres.
The third annual Handel's Messiah "Sing-In" will be held at 6 p.m., and singers from throughout the area are invited to participate in the informal program.
The choir, accompanied by the Columbia County Civic Orchestra, will perform selections from composer George Frideric Handel's Messiah , which includes the Hallelujah Chorus.
"The singers will be made up of people from really all across the area that come and sing in the choir," said Nordan, also the orchestra's conductor and music director.
Those interested in singing should show up for a 4:15 p.m. rehearsal on Sunday and should wear black clothing, Nordan said.
Sheet music will be available.
In addition to the civic orchestra, the free concert will feature solo vocalists Katrina Chandler, of Evans; April Shelton and Sarah Price, from Augusta State University; Chris Norris, music minister at West Acres; as well as Nordan.
In previous performances, Nordan said, between 50 and 75 singers have participated in the sing-along, and nearly 900 people attended last year.
"This is a tradition," he said. "I feel like every year we make connections with more people in the community, and more people find out about what we're doing."
For details about the concerts, call (706) 860-6573.