Upper Country Singers Begin Rehearsals for 2025
The annual Upper Country Singers Christmas Concert has become a cherished community tradition. In early December, friends, neighbors, and families gather to welcome the Christmas season with refreshments and festive singing. This year’s theme is “Let it Be Christmas Everywhere.”
The Upper Country Singers present their performances as a gift to the community. With a group of talented amateurs, they strive to present a performance that is as close to professional quality as possible.
Preparations for the concert begin in early September, when 35 to 45 singers come together for weekly rehearsals. For the Upper Country Singers board, however, planning begins much earlier; they start selecting music immediately after the previous year’s concert. When selecting the music, the board aims for a balanced program: familiar pieces, both sacred and secular, along with some new arrangements. Their goal is to choose songs everyone will enjoy.
By offering a wide variety of music, the Upper Country Singers board ensures there is something for every taste, whether you’re singing on stage or listening in the audience. Even within the choir, preferences vary. This year’s selections feature “Silver Bells,” “God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen,” “Sleigh Ride,” along with many others.
The singers come from as far away as Council and Payette, and many have been part of this magical concert for years. Over time, they learn each other’s names and build friendships as they sing together. Rehearsal breaks give them a chance to visit and catch up. Being part of this group is something they all look forward to. Because of these friendships, their performances reflect a genuine warmth and connection.
Debbie Warren shares that this sense of community within the choir is one of the most meaningful parts of the Christmas concert. Over the years, she has become friends with many of the singers, and they look forward to getting together not just to sing, but also to spend time together as friends.
The concert features both an adult and a children’s choir performing. Children as young as three years old up to 12 years old sing in the children’s choir. Once a child turns 12, they are welcome to move up to the adult choir. The children’s choir has both dancing and singing as part of their performance. Through their training they even learn some sign language.
The Upper Country Singers are a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, and once again, the generosity of our communities is on full display. All operating funds come from concert donations and additional contributions throughout the year. Local businesses support the group by donating services, such as printing the concert programs. The Midvale School generously provides rehearsal space, while Cambridge schools provide the risers used for the performance. Students from both Cambridge and Midvale high schools volunteer to assist with concert refreshments, while choir members handle set-up, decorating, tear-down, and clean-up before and after the concert.
If you would like to be part of this special yearly tradition, the first rehearsal for the Upper Country Singers’ 2025 Christmas Concert will be held on Monday, September 8, 2025, from 7:00–9:00 p.m. in the Midvale School Community Room, located on the back side of the old school building. Rehearsals will continue every Monday evening until the performance. For more information, please contact Debbie Warren at (208) 866-7583.
The planning meeting and first rehearsal for the Upper Country Children’s Choir will be held on Friday, September 12, 2025, at 4:30 p.m. at the Midvale Community Baptist Church. For details, please contact Laurel Sherman at (208) 550-2675.
