Milton Allen, wind symphony conductor, had an idea for a concert that had never been done before at Eastern.

“I wanted a concert that showcased all aspects of the music department,” he said

The Holiday College Concert was Sunday afternoon at McAfee Auditorium and featured the major ensembles and studio and chamber ensembles of the music department.

Allen had the idea to bring all the bands and choirs together in one concert. The concert would be department-wide and held every other year.

“It’s collective, a variety of styles,” Allen said. “This concert shows the depth of the department that no other concert does.”

The concert included many opportunities for audience participation.

The first song performed was “O Come All Ye Faithful,” in which the choir sang the second verse and the audience sang the remaining verses. “The First Noel” and “Angels We Have Heard On High” were also sung by the audience while accompanied by the orchestra.

The concert played non-stop music. All applause was held for the end of the concert.

During the concert, the Brass Quintet, Camerata, Concert Choir, ESO Brass Ensemble/Percussion, Flute Quintet, Jazz Ensemble, Percussion Ensemble, String Quartet and Tuba Trio performed.

The years that the college concert is not being held, other concerts will showcase one musical group.

Richard Rossi, director of University Mixed Chorus, said the music department would be alternating concerts year by year.

“We would be alternating the college concert with the ESO holiday concert,” he said. “The college concert and the Handel’s Messiah concert would be happening in the same year.”

The college concert included all the musical groups to take the pressure off one group having to perform by itself.

“Having the college concert was a shared responsibility,” Rossi said.

Jackie Bretz, senior music education major and wind symphony member, said

most of the rehearsal of the college concert was done in their respective musical groups.

“The musical groups had one rehearsal with everyone on Saturday,” Bretz said.

The community was a major factor in the decision to host the concert.

Josh Kumpula, graduate assistant in the music department, was involved in the percussion ensemble and the wind symphony. He said he thought the community would enjoy hearing all aspects of the music department in one place.

Sam Fagaly, director of the jazz ensemble, liked the idea of a college concert.

“Having a concert that included the whole department appealed to the community,” Fagaly said.

The next musical concert is Handel’s Messiah on Dec. 7 at McAfee Auditorium.