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Christmas with Wartburg began in 1947 under the direction of Dr. Edwin Liemohn and Edfield Odegard. Although both the college and the program have grown considerably since then, the 1947 program was remarkably similar in format to the current production. This performance was done in the Waverly High school gymnasium.
Enrollment in 1947 was 632, compared with today's total of 1,810. The numbers reflected a growing postwar influx of men—144 in the freshman class compared with 37 in the senior class.
CWW in 1949
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When Knights Gymnasium opened on the Wartburg campus, its stage became the Christmas concert venue, beginning in December 1949. The 1951 program was the first to use the title "Christmas at Wartburg." By that time, the Wartburg Band and the Castle Singers were included.
Dr. Warren Schmidt joined the music faculty in 1950 and subsequently became Christmas with Wartburg organist for the next 40 years. He recalls moving a portative pipe organ to Knights Gym for the annual program, which by 1953 was attracting an audience of more than 1,500.
1968 to 1973
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In 1968, the Wartburg Community Symphony Orchestra, an oratorio chorus, and the Wartburg Choir and Castle Singers performed Handel’s Messiah in the gym, followed the next year by Bach’s Christmas Oratorio, which included the local high school chamber choir and a sixth-grade select choir.
CWW in 1974
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Christmas at Wartburg returned to its more traditional format in 1974, featuring the Wartburg Concert Band, Castle Singers, Wartburg women’s chorus and chamber choir, faculty women’s chorus and flute choir.
2007 performances
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The 2007 program included approximately 350 student musicians and is viewed by nearly 7,000 people. Christmas with Wartburg has been featured on public television stations around the United States and in Midwest Living magazine.
Christmas with Wartburg Today
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The 2009 performance will be the 62 anniversary.
This year’s performances will be on:
Friday, December 4th (Neumann) 7:30 PM
Saturday, December 5th (Lutheran Church of Hope, Des Moines) 7:30 PM
Sunday, December 6th (Neumann) 2:00 PM
(Neumann) 7:00 PM
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