Christmas Concert 2023

Big Orchestra grabbed our attention immediately as they opened the concert with Rossini’s William Tell overture and Leroy Anderson’s Sleigh Ride, a Christmas classic. Concert Band were menacing throughout The Mandalorian (Goransson), but clearly also enjoyed the light-hearted humour in The Bare Necessities (Gilkyson). Our newly formed Guitar Group made their concert debut on the second night, rocking the place with Michael Jackson’s Billy Jean - this group is a fantastic addition to the huge range of ensembles at Churchill Academy and is very much open to new members, as indeed are all of our groups. This year’s Junior Young Musician winner and runner-up, Molly Blundell and Xavier Keirle, showed off their musical prowess, captivating the audience with their huge musical talent before our BTEC Performing Arts students performed two contrasting show songs full of fabulous harmonies and an engaging interpretation. The KS3 Girls’ and Boys’ Choirs performed a medley of songs full of energy, both individually and as a combined choir, concluding with Don Besig’s Chariot's Comin’! Brass Group and our new Woodwind Group both delighted us with some classic film scores and Christmas tunes before we were treated to a sneak preview of the forthcoming production of High School Musical on Stage.

The second half of the programme opened with Kabalevsky’s Violin Concerto, 1st mvt, with Toby Wilson performing the solo part with great aplomb. Soul Band got us dancing with a couple numbers including Careless Whisper, before two of our student bands made their Christmas Concert debuts, wowing the audience and all of the other students backstage. The final item was our now infamous Junior Choir. This choir of Year 7 and 8 students told the Christmas story in their own way, singing songs which they had themselves composed. The massed choir of around 200 students is always a spine tingling moment and most definitely one of the highlights of the whole school year. Simply put, it was a stunning conclusion to a thoroughly enjoyable evening.

We are incredibly proud of all of our students who performed and expect great things from them in the future, particularly in the music and performing arts fields. Congratulations to all of our performers.

We would like to express our sincere gratitude to our audience for their unwavering support and appreciation of the arts. We firmly believe that events like these have the power to bring our community together and inspire a love for music and performing arts. 

We eagerly anticipate seeing everyone again next year!