This year’s program features "Wexford Carol," a new composition by local composer Bill Beckstrand, with Eric Anderson on trombone and a vocal ensemble. Other works will include a selection from Handel’s Messiah, and a small women’s ensemble singing "Candle Blessing," a Hanukkah piece by David Ludwig. Handel’s "The People That Walked in Darkness" will feature Scott Mehlhaff, baritone; and "Rise Up, Shepherd, and Follow," by Gordon Thornett, will feature Aurora Schelmeske, soprano. Scott Mehlhaff, Mike Roth, Aurora Schelmeske, Hannah Miller, and Erika Ternes will be featured soloists in the piece "Come Unto Him," by BJ Muus,

From the early days of Cook County’s Symphonium Music Club in the 1950s to today’s Borealis Chorale & Orchestra (BCO), hundreds of talented and devoted community members have kept the art of choral music alive in Cook County.