If you listened carefully yesterday afternoon, you might have heard the sweet sounds of Christmas joy wafting throughout Wilton, coming from a performance sponsored by a group that personifies true holiday spirit and generosity. The Kiwanis Club of Wilton, one of Wilton’s most dedicated service organizations, held its annual holiday luncheon Wednesday and featured the Wilton High School Madrigals, the school’s advanced a cappella choral singers, as the main entertainment.
The group’s inspiring performance under the direction of Kevin Cotellese awed the overflow crowd of about 150 Kiwanis Club members and their guests. The Madrigals sang both traditional Christmas carols and contemporary versions of holiday songs including White Winter Hymnal, Good King Wenceslas, Deck the Halls, Jingle Bells, We Wish You a Merry Christmas, and the Hanukkah song, S’vivon Sov, Sov, Sov. The talent was evident and electrifying–just see the videos we’ve included below. One number that brought many attendees to their feet was the Madrigals’ modern take on Little Drummer Boy, featuring a beat-box solo from WHS junior Evan Timnev.
In a lovely parallel, the performance was preceded by a duet from two of the Kiwanians at the lunch, Rick Mapes and Kevin Murray, who sang Little Drummer Boy/Peace on Earth. The complimentary coincidence was a beautiful show of how joyous musical expression of the season can span generations.
The Kiwanis Club of Wilton exists almost solely as a selfless entity to help others. Simply run a search on GOOD Morning Wilton for ‘Kiwanis’ and you’ll find a treasure trove of articles detailing the organization’s largesse and volunteer spirit. Their collective contribution to Wilton over the years is one that defines “good will” toward fellow humans. If anything says, “true meaning of the season,” it’s the Kiwanis Club, which is deserving of recognition and thanks.
How perfect, then, that the Club was serenaded by the Madrigals with the closing number, We Wish You a Merry Christmas.
The Madrigals will join the other chorale and musical groups from Wilton High School in a Winter Concert next Wednesday, Dec. 19 at 7:30 p.m. in the Clune Center. The public is invited to attend. For more information about volunteering and membership with the Kiwanis Club of Wilton, visit the club’s website.
Members of the Madrigals:
Joseph Apuzzo
Tyler Blain
Katherine Buse
Anna Clark
Audrey Elsberry
Zayvion Eusebe
Kyra Fanelli
Kirsten Finnecy
Brett Gilman
Jayna Gumins
Jubair Huq
Grant Jones
Meryl Kaduboski
Robert Killian
Alexander Koutsoukos
Davis Langhoff
Nicholas Lin
Hannah Mikita
Lily Mikita
Alexandra Myers
Rachel Nadel
Teresa Nobles
Madeline Pennino
Ciaran Smith
Cole Stefan
Evan Timnev
Christopher Tovar
Andrew Tsantilas
Adarsh Varghese
Nadia Voravolya
Eleanor Winrow
Sylvia Zhao