ST. PAUL – It has been a few years since Les Musicos, a local mixed community choir, presented the Festival of Carols in St. Paul.
Finally, Les Musicos will once again host the presentation on Dec. 18 at the St. Paul Cathedral at 6:30 p.m., directed by Laurier Levasseur and Don Buryn, and accompanied by Patricia Gervais.
According to Buryn, the Festival of Carols, which will also include performances from other local musicians, will be free for members of the community to enjoy. Donations, however, will be collected for the St. Paul & District Food Bank.
Buryn said the pandemic made it impossible for the group to move forward with hosting the Festival of Carols for the past few years. It has been difficult for many members of the group, many who see the choir as a family where they can share their talents and gifts.
However, the group managed to stay in touch, wondering and planning when they could perform again.
As the pandemic restrictions eased earlier this year, Buryn told the group, “I think we’re going to be able to start in September.”
Despite the short notice, “they were super excited, and they couldn’t wait to get in and do it again,” said Buryn. However, as a mixed community choir, some members have left throughout the years, leaving holes and parts that needed filling in the group.
The group was able to invite new members, allowing them to start practicing and getting back on track.
“It’s exciting to be back,” said Buryn. “There are many people in the group that are so close with each other... We’ve gotten close together and it’s a special kind of a relationship.”
Buryn notes that fellow director Laurier Levasseur was once his teacher in the past. Levasseur was a long-time music teacher in the community.
“[Levassuer] himself is in his 80s now,” explains Buryn, as he recalls becoming a member of Levasseur’s choir when Buryn was in high school. Buryn then moved away from St. Paul to pursue a career in teaching, before finding himself in Elk Point and founding a choir in the 1990s.
“I did it for 10 years there,” recalled Buryn, before moving back to St. Paul and reconnecting with Levasseur.
Buryn says the community can expect a showcase of local talents presenting holiday songs, and an evening of music featuring a variety of “age groups, languages, instrumental numbers, and choral presentations,” at this year’s Festival of Carols.
