51st Annual Ecumenical Concert

The Carey Ecuemnical Choir will present its 51st Annual Christmas Concert on Sunday, December 14 at 4:00pm here at the Basilica and National Shrine of Our Lady of Consolation.

Under the direction of Mr. Anthony Gallina, the Director of Music Ministries at Our Lady of Consolation, the choir will present a concert of sacred Advent and Christmas music. The choir this year is 42 voices. A brass quintet and cello will accompany a few of the pieces. Some works include: “O Come, Emmanuel” by Elaine Hagenberg, “Go Tell it on the Mountain” by Philip Kern, “O Nata Lux” by Douglas Byler, and “O Holy Night” by René Clausen.

There is no cost to attend the concert, although a freewill offering will be taken up about halfway through the evening of music. Following the concert, all are invited to a reception in the Shrine Cafeteria.

The Carey Ecumenical Choir was founded in 1971 as a collaboration between John Raymaley, Ronald Croy, James Roynon, and Brother Paul Faroh, OFM Conv. The choir has held a Christmas concert each year since, with exceptions being in 1984 and 2020-2022. In 1988 and 2025, the choir also performed a spring concert due to special Jubilees taking place at the Basilica dn Shrine. In past years, the group has been featured on WBGU and Channel 13 as well as a taped Christmas Mass for the Diocese of Toledo. Membership each year in the choir has ranged from 50 all the way to 130 in the late 1990s.