Features Editor

Nov. 30, 2000 10 PM

Christmas comes to all hamlets, towns and cities, but it comes in a very special way to Troy.

Each year, the Troy Music Teachers Association and the Troy Council on the Arts and Humanities sponsor "Christmas in Troy," a musical performance featuring students of Troy and Pike County piano teachers.

This year’s performance will be held at 2:30 p.m., Sunday, Dec. 3, in the Adams Center Ballroom on the campus of Troy State University.

The event has become a Troy Christmas tradition and this year’s event will be the 12th production and, with about 85 students participating, should be one of the best ever.

Irene Walker, piano teacher and member of the Troy Music Teachers Association, said the students will play Christmas selections on 10 pianos. There will be two and sometimes three students and teachers at each piano.

"We are pleased that the students seem to enjoy the event very much and look forward to it," Walker said. "The sound coming from 10 pianos is one which is not heard frequently and it exposes the students to an orchestral sound."

The program will be directed by Dr. William Denison, director of the John M. Long School of Music at Troy State University, and will include carols and songs of many lands which are representative of the Christmas season.

Some of the selections to be played include "Silent Night," "Jingle Bells,"

"Away in a Manger" and other familiar songs of the season.

The level of students is from the early beginner through high school and also includes some adult students.

Gwen Threadgill, another teacher, said that opportunities for public performance require the students to prepare well and gives them a goal toward which to work.

"They must become accustomed to playing with a partner," Threadgill said. "This concert is a unique event and provides the students with a broad spectrum of piano music."

Admission to "Christmas in Troy" is free and everyone is invited to attend this wonderful event that showcases the talent of so many of Pike County’s pianists.

"The Arts Council is pleased to help sponsor this important event," said Don Crapps, president of the Troy Council on the Arts and Humanities. "It seems to set the tone for the entire Christmas season."