Hundreds of holiday music lovers decked the halls December 6 in a spectacular evening as the UW-Whitewater Gala Concert marked its 30th in-person performance with a holiday celebration inspired by the grandeur of the silver screen. Attendees stepped into a night where music met the magic of the movies. It was an unforgettable journey through soaring melodies, dramatic rhythms, and the powerful emotion only live performance could deliver.
From small ensembles playing festively, to the main performances that make those around smile and laugh with joy, this yearly tradition helps bring student musicians and the Whitewater community closer, though that is not the main purpose of this event.
“The annual Gala Benefit Concert showcases every ensemble in the Department of Music. Through this amazing event, we can raise funds for scholarships in support of our fantastic music students,” Music Chair Christian Ellenwood said.
(Natalie Illikainen)
This event first started three decades ago in person to help students gain scholarship funding through festive music.
“The longevity of the Gala Benefit Concert is certainly evidence of the great importance and value of this event to the university and local community,” Ellenwood said. “Celebrating the best qualities of humanity and human connection through the art of music is as important as it has ever been, and we are thrilled that the gala has become an important annual tradition.”
Alumni and Gala Friends were invited to arrive early and reunite at 5:30 p.m. in an intimate gathering with light hors d’oeuvres and cocktails. Emeritus Dr. Myung Hee Chung was the special guest for the evening to welcome patrons, alumni, and friends back for the landmark celebratory year. Music revelers then experienced the full scope of this extraordinary night at 6:30 p.m. when every corner of the venue came alive as student ensembles ignited the atmosphere with dynamic, immersive performances. While attendees were enjoying the music, they checked out the prizes in a basket raffle.
“As we enter the time of shortening daylight and lengthening nights, people crave beauty, connection, light, reunion and generosity of spirit, and the Gala Benefit Concert brings this to them, year after year,” Ellenwood said. “The fact that this event is in our 30th year demonstrates that the community truly values our mission as well as the exceptional caliber of our music-making.”
Although the whole Music Department is involved in planning this huge and important event, one person in particular is taking the lead in decorations and is receiving help from students.
“This year, we are involving music organizations to help decorate the Center of the Arts and The Young while having a competition between them on whose gingerbread house is best decorated,” department assistant Kat Bastien said.
The theme this year was centered around holiday films, giving guests a feeling of being in a holiday movie, with lights that twinkle like snow and photo opportunities with The Grinch and the conductor from The Polar Express.
“The money helps the music students as the schedule of a music major is very time-consuming, as the difficult economy adds to the stress of having to focus and perfect their craft through their collegiate time here,” Bastien said.
(Natalie Illikainen)
Her favorite aspect is the excitement that the department radiates and the reinvigoration of Gala. It brings the community together in a fun and exciting way as the holiday season gets closer.
“Each year, the Gala Benefit Concert is the event that makes me the proudest to be a faculty member of the UW-Whitewater Department of Music,” Ellenwood said. “Staging an event like this takes the full resources, planning, work, dedication, and talent of my colleagues and students, who work together in the most generous, artistic, and beautiful ways—and all in support of each other and our community.”
By all accounts of attendees, the UW-Whitewater 30th annual Gala Benefit Concert was a dazzling celebration of music, legacy, and showcase for the enduring power of live performance.
