As the beginning of winter break slowly crawls closer and closer, Haverford’s music department gets into the holiday spirit with the annual winter homeroom concert assemblies. Each year, the high school Combined Chorus, Symphonic Orchestra, and Wind Ensemble perform different holiday songs (such as “Sleigh Ride” and “Carol of the Bells”) alongside their individual concert selections for the whole school.

“I love how the winter homeroom assemblies are an opportunity for the school to see how talented the music programs are at Haverford. And it’s awesome how they let students show off concert selections too since the concerts throughout the year aren’t always well-attended by students,” said junior Shelby Hufnal.

In the months leading up to the assemblies, students in the performing groups get the chance to practice their songs during their music classes, allowing them to experiment and have a lot of fun with learning their parts. Besides the music itself, students in the music department love performing at the holiday concerts because it gives them the perfect opportunity to get a little more festive than usual.

“I love that we get to dress up and I can wear a sweet Christmas tie for the assemblies, it helps to bring out the holiday cheer that’s there deep down among the students,” said junior Simon Curry.

For the first time ever, this year’s winter holiday concert assemblies will feature Haverford’s Jazz Ensemble at the Thursday concert in place of a performance by the Wind Ensemble and String Ensemble. Besides playing a few of their competition songs, the Jazz Ensemble will play a medley of some of the most popular and festive holiday songs.

“I’m really excited to play with the Jazz Ensemble for the winter assembly because the Jazz Ensemble rarely gets an opportunity to play for the students, so it’s nice to show our hard work,” said junior Charlie Wolfe.

The winter homeroom concert assemblies provide students with a fun and festive way to get into the holiday spirit while also allowing students in the music department to showcase their overflowing talent.