Anacostia Coordinating Council and DC Strings Ring in the Holidays at St. Philip’s

Authored by: Markus Batchelor
On December 10th, the Anacostia Coordinating Council, in partnership with DC Strings Workshop, brought a night of local music and holiday cheer to St. Philip the Evangelist Episcopal Church in Historic Anacostia.

Led by conductor and Ward 8 resident Andrew Lee, the Messiah Chamber Orchestra performed live instrumental and vocal selections from the oratorio Handel’s Messiah – a particularly nostalgic experience for Ward 7 resident Ambrose Lane, Jr., who said it brought back memories of performing the songs in his Catholic school choir at 10 years old. When the orchestra began For unto us a child is born, “I was brought to tears”, Lane said.

The DC Strings Workshop hosts year-round youth education programming and performances across the District, including a Strings and Percussion Program at Ward 8’s Johnson Middle School.

After the performance, the ACC welcomed attendees and performers to dinner and a live holiday jazz concert, where both young and young-at-heart enjoyed dancing and photos with Santa.

This latest partnership is another one of ACC’s efforts to bring rich cultural and community events east of the Anacostia River —with organizations like DC Strings at the center. “ACC and the DC Strings Workshop plan to make the presentation of The Messiah an annual event,” said Philip Pannell, ACC’s Executive Director. “East-of-the-River residents will be able to look forward to enjoying that holiday classic.”

You can watch the full recorded performance at tiny.cc/MessiahConcert. u

Stuart “Santa” Anderson of the Anacostia Coordinating Council relays a Christmas wish.

Conductor and Ward 8 resident Andrew Lee leads DC String’s Messiah Chamber Orchestra in a performance of Handel’s Messiah.

DC String’s Messiah Chamber Orchestra performs Handel’s Messiah at Anacostia’s St. Philip’s Episcopal Church.

Concert attendees join together in prayer after a performance of Handel’s Messiah in Anacostia.