A hometown Christmas concert in Franklin

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For the 25th year, a Hometown Christmas Concert will return to St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, corner of Main (state Highway 357) and Institute streets in Franklin, Saturday, Dec. 17 at 6 p.m. Arrive early for best seating. Guest organist Al Fedak will perform a prelude of original Christmas selections beginning at 5:45.

The Catskill Brass and Fedak will play a variety of sacred and secular music for the Christmas season. Carleton Clay and Ben Aldridge co-direct this concert and Aldridge will delight the audience with a new composition written for this concert.

The Catskill Brass has performed hundreds of Christmas concerts, among then the Christmas concert in Franklin. This year’s performers will include Ben Aldridge, Carleton Clay, Ralph Dudgeon, Andrew O’Dell and Matt Oram on trumpets, Daniel Martin and Paul Blake on trombones, Frank Meredith on Euphonium, and Michael DePauw on tuba.

Hometown Concert will feature two guest artists from Delhi, the soprano Johanna Arnold and her husband Kim Paterson on piano. This year, they will be joined by their daughter Barbara Paterson, returning for a holiday visit from New Zealand where she teaches music and dance at University of Wellington and performs as a soprano with the New Zealand Opera Company.

The renowned American organist and composer, Fedak comes to St. Paul’s from Albany where he recently retired as Minister of Music and Arts at Westminster Presbyterian Church, Capitol Hill. The American Organist named him “one of the country’s leading church musicians.” Playing at St. Paul’s is a particular treat for him because the organ is the same as the one he played in his first professional position.

After intermission the concert will conclude with a traditional sing-along of Christmas carols.

Admission is free, but donations towards St. Paul’s restoration fund will be gratefully accepted.

Parking will be available along Main, Institute, and Center streets and off Center Street in the school parking lot, behind the playground.