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Duke in Pics: Staff and Faculty Ring In Holidays with Music

Concert in Duke Chapel includes comraderie in the spirit of the season

Brandi Q. Hancock and Premium Design perform at Duke Chapel for the annual Duke Employee Holiday Concert. Photos by Stephen Schramm.
Brandi Q. Hancock and Premium Design perform at Duke Chapel for the annual Duke Employee Holiday Concert. Photos by Stephen Schramm.

Several hundred Duke employees gathered in the pews of Duke University Chapel on Thursday morning to hear holiday music as Duke took a moment to celebrate the season with the annual Employee Holiday Concert.

The event, which featured light refreshments on the Chapel Quad and a Duke-branded winter scarf as a gift for the first 300 guests, is organized by the Staff & Labor Relations, a unit within Duke Human Resources.

Brandi Q. Hancock and Premium Design provided the music. A classically-trained soprano who blends gospel and soul music, Hancock performed rousing renditions of holiday classics such as Jingle Bell Rock, Let it Snow and Winter Wonderland.

Enjoy some scenes from the event.

A person knitting while watching a concert.
Laura Cappaletti of Duke Libraries used the concert as an opportunity to multi-task. While enjoying the music, she broke out her knitting needles and yarn and made headway on a lace shawl that will soon be a Christmas present for someone on her list.

“It was beautiful,” Cappelletti said of the show. “I love music and I love taking part in any events on campus that have to do with music and are close by to the library. It’s convenient for us to take advantage of it.”

 

A little girl at a concert with her family.

Angela Fowler, 2, joined her parents and her older sister Lily at the show. Dan Fowler, the girls’ father and a Chemistry faculty member, said it was a pleasure to take time out of his day to enjoy the scene with his family.

“They loved it, they were dancing a little bit,” Fowler said. “We all loved it. The singer was great.”

Two people sitting on steps outdoors.
After the event, Chris Vallanat, left, and Jennifer Korzekwinski, both of Duke Radiology, joined the rest of the concert goers in enjoying some light snacks and hot cider before getting on with the rest of their day.

Korzekwinski had been to the concert before, but brought Vallanat along for his first.

“I told him about it this year and said ‘We have to go,’” Korzekwinski said. “It just kicks off the holiday season.”

Both said they enjoyed the music and the scarves that were given out as gifts for the first 300 employees who showed up.

“I loved it,” Vallanat said.

If you missed the concert or would like to experience the show again, enjoy this video:

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