6 // COASTWEEKEND.COM Cannon Beach Chorus goes ‘Home for the Holidays’ The Cannon Beach Chorus will present its winter concert, “Home for the Holidays,” at three separate locations the first weekend in December. The performances will take place 7 p.m. Friday, Dec. 1, in the Warrenton Christian Church; 7 p.m. Sat- urday, Dec. 2, in the Cannon Beach Community Church; and 3 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 3, in the Nehalem United Method- ist Church. Led by conductor John Buehler, the concert program will include “The Christmas Oratorio” by Camille Saint- Saëns, a nine-movement oratorio that proclaims the Christmas story by featur- ing the Chorus, soloists and ensembles. The soloist and ensemble movements will feature sing- ers within the Chorus, and ERICK BENGEL PHOTO Susan Buehler, a pianist with the Cannon Beach Chorus, tickles the ivories of her baby grand in her home studio. COLIN MURPHEY PHOTO The Cannon Beach Chorus rehearses for performances that will celebrate the group’s 30th anniversary. Chorus pianist Susan Buehler will accompany the entire program. Other works will include “I’ll Be Home for Christ- mas,” “Winter Wonderland,” “Ave Maria” by Gounod based on Prelude I from “The Well-Tempered Clavichord” by J.S. Bach, Franz Biebl’s “Ave Maria” made known by the male choral ensemble Chanticleer, “Jingle Bells,” “The Christmas Song,” “Beams of Gentle Light” (a song for Hanukkah), “We Wish You a Merry Christ- mas” and “Peace, Peace.” Celebrating 30 years The Chorus was found- ed in 1988 and will soon Rising songwriters perform on the Long Beach Peninsula LONG BEACH, WASH. — The next Peninsula Arts Center show, featuring songwrit- ers Anna Tivel and Jeffrey Martin, will take place 7 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 2. A nationally touring artist with a deep love of quiet stories, Tivel is beginning to carve out a place for herself in the songwriting world. She was recently chosen as winner of both the Telluride Trouba- dour Contest and the Kerrville New Folk Contest, placed second at the Rocky Moun- tain songwriting contest, and has shared the stage with heroes and friends alike. Tivel was raised in the for- est and farmland of rural north- ern Washington and currently calls Portland home. Her songs reflect both the stark colors of small-town life, and the hard, sharp lines of the city. Folk Radio UK called her newest album, “Heroes Waking Up,” a “superb and sublime album from a voice COURTESY PENINSULA ARTS CENTER Anna Tivel, left, and Jeffrey Martin that deserves to be shouted from the highest rooftops.” Martin was raised with an ear cocked and listening to Neil Young, John Prine, Jackson Browne, Bob Dylan and Harry Chapin. He was fortunate to live in Eugene for much of his adolescence, where in the late 1990s and early 2000s there was a strong, steady flow of folk songwriters touring through. Leo Kotke, John Gorka and David Wilcox were huge inspirations. In 2011, Martin caught a lucky break: a chance encounter with a prominent local promoter at a rowdy dive bar. He was invited to open for Tracy Grammer and then David Wilcox, which led to a few small tours and, eventually, a finalist slot in a national songwriting compe- tition in New York City and a successful national tour. The Peninsula Arts Center is located at 504 Pacific Ave. N., Long Beach, Washington. Admission is $15 at the door or online through Brown Paper Tickets, or call Bill Svendsen at 360-901-0962. Wine, beer and other re- freshments are available for purchase. Concerts benefit the Long Beach Peninsula Acoustic Music Association, a nonprof- it charitable organization. celebrate its 30th anniver- sary, which will highlight a commissioned choral work from composer Daniel Gaw- throp to commemorate the occasion. The 60-voice non-audition Chorus is an advocate for choral music education and supports the area-wide public school choral programs, and also awards a vocal scholar- ship each spring to gradu- ating high school seniors wishing to continue singing at the collegiate level. For more information regarding the scholarship program and application/ audition/interview process, visit the Chorus website cannonbeachchorus.org. The membership of the Chorus represents every community on the North Coast from Astoria to Oceanside. “I love the camaraderie of our Chorus where singers of various religious back- grounds and from many coastal communities are united by their love of sing- ing,” Chorus president Terrill Michelsen, of Wheeler, said. “I am carried away by the harmonies and the text of ‘The Christmas Oratorio.’ And there won’t be a dry eye in the house with our final concert selection of ‘Peace, Peace’ as the audience sings ‘Silent Night.’” The admission fee to each concert is $10 for adults. Students 16 and under are admitted free if accompanied by an adult. Tickets may be purchased in advance by calling 503- 436-0378 or at the door. For more information about the Chorus, ticket prices, leader- ship and more, visit cannon- beachchorus.org. Any artists in need of a studio? ASTORIA — Astoria Visual Arts is seeking applications from local artists interested in working in a rent-free studio Jan. 1 through April 30, 2018. The deadline for applica- tions is midnight, Sunday, Dec. 10. The notification of selection is Sunday, Dec. 17. The successful candi- date will be provided with a studio space located on the Columbia River in the Astoria Downtown Historic District free of charge for a four-month residency beginning Monday, Jan. 1. The AVA a-i-r Program is designed to encourage the creative, intellectual and professional growth of local artists. Residency finalists are chosen on the basis of merit by an independent selection panel of working artists and arts patrons. Past applicants are encouraged to reapply with an updated portfolio and statement reflecting updates and changes. For more information about AVA a-i-r, visit asto- riavisualarts.org/ava-a-i-r. html. AVA a-i-r is supported by membership dues and contributions from sup- porters of Astoria Visual Arts and by the generosity of Astoria Coffee House & Bistro and Merry Time Bar and Grill. Astoria Visual Arts was founded in 1989 as a nonprofit membership organization to enhance, strengthen and promote the arts in the Greater Astoria Area.