How 81 students are fine-tuning eight pieces spanning numerous genres ahead of global show
On Dec. 11, viewers worldwide will be treated to a captivating musical spectrum at Christmas at Belmont: Live from Nashville — hearing sounds from bluegrass to pop rock to classical symphony. While acclaimed artists like Ashley Cooke and Cody Fry will take center stage, an unsung ensemble of 81 student performers will power the entire production away from the spotlight.
Belmont’s symphony orchestra, directed by Dr. Christopher Fashun, serves as Christmas at Belmont’s musical backbone. Performers on center stage will rotate throughout the evening, but the same orchestra is responsible for playing eight drastically different pieces, all of which were learned in just weeks.
Showcasing Belmont's Musical Diversity
The show will mark the first Christmas at Belmont for Fashun who joined the College of Music & Performing Arts this past summer. For his orchestra’s first fall concert, he intentionally designed the programming in a way that reflected the contrasting musical styles of Christmas at Belmont.
“The biggest challenge for an orchestra in a show like this is having to switch gears from one thing to the next,” Fashun said. “You have to know how to go from playing something like Tchaikovsky to a contemporary piece and what to do on your instrument to make those changes. Not only is that fun to listen to, but educationally speaking, it’s the way forward. To make a living doing this, you must be able to play multiple styles, so we give our students that experience on the biggest stage we can.”
Kara Schlenk, a senior double major in public relations and music with an emphasis in classical violin performance, serves as the orchestra's principal second violinist. Schlenk is preparing for her fourth Christmas at Belmont performance, and now under the tutelage of Fashun, she described this year’s as the most musically diverse show she has been a part of.
“All of the pieces this year are a great representation of the musical diversity at Belmont,” she said. “We go from a strictly instrumental, classical-ish piece to a bluegrass piece with Southbound. Then there is a musical theatre piece in there as well. It’s so much fun to turn those dials in your brain — its strenuous, but incredibly rewarding.”
In addition to preparing musically, the orchestra spends months preparing for the visual production element of Christmas at Belmont as well.
Intricate movements such as Schlenk’s strings section bowing in unison or turning their sheet music silently to avoid being picked up by overhead microphones are rehearsed with extra motivation.
Christmas at Belmont is representative of Belmont in a way that makes me proud to be a music student.
Music as a Medium for Joy
Despite the additional challenges, Christmas at Belmont is an opportunity savored by the orchestra. Not only is it a chance for student performers to display their talents in the world-class Fisher Center for the Performing Arts for a global audience, but it is a chance to share love and joy with people who the performers cannot ordinarily reach.
“When I think of Christmas, I think of celebration, not something stuck in over-serious tradition, and I think we have a program here that really blends Christianity with pop culture,” said Fashun. “Lots of people who are not Christian still celebrate aspects of Christmas from a cultural standpoint, and there is a joy that Christmas generally brings to people.”
Christmas holds a special place in Schlenk's heart, perfectly complementing her love for performing this show.
“I love everything about Christmas — the snow, the smells, the music,” she said. “And I love the hundreds of cohorts I get to celebrate it with. I love how accomplished and proud we are of what we achieve after months of pressure and build up.
Extending Joy Through Hospitality
To successfully extend this joy to viewers, Fashun believes it is made possible through hospitality.
He starts every rehearsal with a devotion or words of encouragement. Recently, he shared the following excerpt from Will Guidara’s “Unreasonable Hospitality: The Remarkable Power of Giving People More Than They Expect.”
“And I believe that whatever you do for a living, you can choose to be in house. In the hospitality business, you have the privilege of joining people as they celebrate the most joyful moments of their lives, and the chance to offer them a brief moment of consolation and relief in the midst of their most difficult ones. Most importantly, we have an opportunity — a responsibility — to make magic in a world that desperately needs more of it.”
“For me, that is what I want my students to remember from this show,” said Fashun. “There are people who have been coming to Christmas at Belmont or watching at home for years. For them, this is their Christmas tradition. As artists, what we bring to the world through creativity is that beauty of community. We can bring people together and give them a gift they can leave with.”
Christmas at Belmont will air live on Prime Video and the Amazon Music channel on Twitch beginning Wednesday, Dec. 11 at 8 p.m. EST/7 p.m. CST.
Learn More
Learn more about Christmas at Belmont: Live From Nashville and the College of Music & Performing Arts