Our Christmas Concert on Leopoldplatz

Written by Wolfgang Seifert, translated by Tim Downie.

Just one week after our concert for the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation the Celtic Choir gave its second Christmas performance of the year.

The concert, which was our sixth open-air-concert, was on the second Sunday of the charming Wedding Christmas Market at the recently refurbished Leopoldplatz. From cakes to ceramics the market stalls offered plenty of hand crafted products from the talented local residents. The Nazareth Church kindly offered us their parish hall to warm up. Sadly we were unable to revisit our former practice hall, the community center nearby at 118 Schulstraße. This had been bulldozed earlier in the year, a decision made by the Bezirksamt Wedding and its cuts.

A covered stage decorated with fir branches was a fitting setting to "Deck the Halls with Boughs of Holly". We sang a cappella and the audience enthusiastically clapped along, especially during "Lord of the Dance". Sabine drummed the rhythm to "Little Drummer Boy," and Heidemarie jingled the bells to "Jingle Bells".

Our half hour concert complemented the preceding act: "Otieno at Safari Kubwa" an Afro-German children's musical by The New Generation Berlin, both acts thankful for the unseasonally mild weather. Despite the challenging acoustics and the fading light, the concert was well-received by the audience; many passers-by stopping to listen, clap and sing along to the choruses. The following act was The Songteller Xmas Show with their wonderful English Christmas tunes, which many of the choir stayed to watch while enjoying the tea and mulled wine kindly laid on for the performers.