'People are looking forward to finding the spirit of the season in this music,' conductor Michael Slon said. 'We need that light in our community and our world.'

When the meticulously restored Paramount Theater reopened to the public on Dec. 15, 2004, local singers found a treasured space in a glittering schedule of internationally known guest performers. Charlottesville's Oratorio Society of Virginia presented its first "Christmas at the Paramount" concert there in 2006, and ticket sales have been brisk for the latest performances in a series that has become a local tradition.

This year's "Christmas at the Paramount" will be presented twice on Saturday, giving audience members an opportunity to hear carols and other favorites the weekend before the holiday.

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"People are looking forward to finding the spirit of the season in this music," Michael Slon, the Oratorio Society's conductor, told The Daily Progress. "We need that light in our community and our world."

Slon said that several of the singers have sung in each of the "Christmas at the Paramount" events.

"That brings a wonderful institutional memory aspect to it," Slon said. "It's our joy to do them for our community."

The featured work on Saturday's program is "A Ceremony of Carols" by Benjamin Britten. Soloists will include Marina Bohuk, Christine Fairfield, Karen Honeycutt, Miles Jackson and Chuanyuan Liu. Harpist Karlee Lanum will perform with the singers.

Liu, an award-winning countertenor, studied with Slon while attending the University of Virginia. He also is a member of Victory Hall Opera and will be featured in "YAPs," the Charlottesville-based opera company's new documentary film about the training and toil that go into seeking a professional career in the competitive world of opera.

"We're happy to have him back as a guest artist," Slon said.

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Liu also will be the soloist for the traditional French carol "Here, Mid the Ass and Oxen Mild," which opens the program.

In keeping with its own tradition, the chorus has invited two guest choirs from the community to share the spotlight. They'll sing right after intermission.

During the 2:30 p.m. concert, the Regents School Cantorum, directed by Kara Faraldi, will perform "Carol of the Bells," "Somewhere in My Memory" and "Noel (O Sing to God Your Hymns of Gladness)" with pianist Timothy Allen and soloist Rose Dorss.

Voces Laetae, directed by Will Cooke, will present "Love" and "Winter Wonderland" at the 7:30 p.m. performance with pianist Barbara Taylor-Moore.

Audience members also will get a chance to sing. Look for David Willcocks' arrangement of Felix Mendelssohn's "Hark! The Herald Angels Sing." Don't worry about remembering the lyrics; they'll be printed in your program.

Also on the program are the traditional English carol "I Saw Three Ships," "Vergente mundi vespere" by Carrie Magin, the instrumental "Fanfare -- La Morisque" by Tielman Susato and Chris Dedrick's arrangement of "The Little Drummer Boy" by Katherine Davis, Henry Onorati and Harry Simeone.

The audience also will hear "The Lamb," John Taverner's setting pf poetry by William Blake; "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" by Hugh Martin and Ralph Blane, in an arrangement by Luther Henderson; and Gloria Shayne and Noel Regney's "Do You Hear What I Hear," as arranged by Emily Crocker and John Moss.

One selection will give listeners a hint of the season to come for the Oratorio Society of Virginia. "Dona nobis pacem" comes from J.S. Bach's famous "Mass in B minor," which the Oratorio Society will sing in its entirety during a concert in UVa's Cabell Hall Auditorium on May 11 of next year.

Coming up next in the Oratorio Society's season will be the latest program in the Together in Song series, in which singers from the community join forces with the chorus to learn and present enriching music. "Music and Poetry" will be presented March 15 at First Presbyterian Church.