Chor Leoni’s Beloved Holiday Concert, Christmas with Chor Leoni, Evokes the Spirit of the Season
Chor Leoni continues its festive tradition with the choir’s hallmark mix of traditional carols, world premieres, and reimagined winter classics
Chor Leoni invites audiences to experience the mystery, wonder, and sparkling joy of the holiday season with its annual celebration, Christmas with Chor Leoni, on December 18 at 7:30pm, December 19 at 5pm & 8pm, and December 20 at 2pm, 5pm & 8pm at St. Andrew’s-Wesley United (1022 Nelson St). Featuring soaring acoustics and immersive lighting at Vancouver’s historical and sacred St. Andrew’s-Wesley United, Christmas with Chor Leoni will introduce four world premiere performances as part of its uplifting program of cherished melodies and newly commissioned winter carols.
“There is a reason Christmas with Chor Leoni is one of Vancouver’s most popular Christmas concerts year after year,” says Erick Lichte, Artistic Director of Chor Leoni. “Our goal is to both entertain and inspire, soothe and delight. We aim to fulfill every listener’s Christmas wish list with surround-sound singing of ancient and new, and send audiences into the Christmas season full of hope, light, and a renewed sense of purpose for the holiday season that lies ahead.”
The 2025 edition of Christmas with Chor Leoni will offer a transcendent blend of traditional favourites such as Ding Dong Merrily on High, Deck the Halls, and Silent Night, alongside Christmas carol reinventions by indie music stars Tori Amos and Sufjan Stevens, each bringing its own shimmer to the festivities.
The concert will feature four world premieres – including two new arrangements and two original commissions – in its enchanting evening of song. Local musician Ken Cormier will present a new arrangement of Sufjan Stevens’ Angels We Have Heard On High, reintroducing the original carol’s famed “Gloria” sequence back into his version.
Chor Leoni’s Composer in Residence Marie-Claire Saindon will premiere a new work, Jubilo, pairing medieval Christmas tunes with the world of folk reels and fiddling. And Vancouver santour player and composer Saina Khaledi will present My Beloved, a Persian Solstice (“Yalda”) song inspired by her father and the Persian tradition of enjoying poetry, music, wine, and memories with loved ones on the longest night of the year.
Chor Leoni’s dazzling 2025 program features a roster of Vancouver-based musical guests, including pianists Karen Lee-Morang and Tina Chang, harpist Vivian Chen, violinist Cameron Wilson, guitarist Keith Sinclair and santour player Saina Khaledi.
About Chor Leoni (chorleoni.org)
Known internationally and loved locally, JUNO-nominated Chor Leoni is recognized as one of the vanguard vocal ensembles in North America. Led by Artistic Director Erick Lichte, Vancouver’s Singing Lions have enriched and transformed people’s lives through singing for thirty years. With stylistic grace and an adventurous spirit, Chor Leoni performs in many languages, styles and genres, always aiming to communicate, engage, and entertain.
December 18, at 7:30pm • December 19, at 5pm & 8pm • December 20, at 2pm, 5pm & 8pm
St. Andrew’s-Wesley United
1022 Nelson St, Vancouver