12/06/2025
DRAFT 2025_1203
Welcoming Remarks by Ed Hooks, Mayor of the City of Mebane
At the Opening of the 54th Annual Performance of "Messiah" in
Mebane, NC
Good afternoon and welcome. My name is Ed Hooks, and it's my privilege to serve as the mayor of Mebane since 20
Today, my real privilege is to be present here with you, as a member of this special listening community a community about to enjoy a remarkable musical experience, under the direction of Maestro Sam Doyle of Greensboro, NC.
Your concert program will guide you, through the performance of this masterpiece of world music and literature--a true work of human genius.
George Fredrick Handel composed this oratorio in 1741--two-generations before the founding of the United States! Handel was 57-year-old at the time. He had started life in Germany, had immigrated to London at the age of 27, and premiered this work in Dublin, in a charity concert to support local Irish hospitals and poor relief.
Messiah is an oratorio—a form of musical opera. As with all opera, an oratorio tells a story, but without the use of stage sets or actors. The singers and musicians do all the heavy lifting in this story-telling with their music alone, without costumes or props.
Using Old and New Testament texts, taken straight from the King James translation of the Christian Bible, Handel sought to explore the magnificence of the story of divine intervention in the course of human history, through the Person and Being of "Jesus the Christ," using only the sound of human voices and musical instruments.
In this special season of wonder and gratitude, this afternoon, we are all musical pilgrims--perhaps sitting along-side neighbors and family, perhaps sitting among strangers or visitors to our town.
Likewise, our performers are musical pilgrims, who have come together from across Alamance, Guilford, and Orange counties to form a special body of one-day story tellers. They will use Handel's music and the texts from sacred Jewish and Christian literature to transport us from the hustle and bustle and mundane of our daily lives to a timeless musical meditation on the universal forces that shape and guide and, we pray, inspire us to live our better lives—not just today in this place but in every place life may bring us.
A final word on our tradition of Messiah in Mebane. Today is the 54th annual performance of this master-work, first performed in Mebane in the Christmas season of 1951.
As with life and the progress of all pilgrims, there have been some interruptions along the way, which make the story of Mebane's Messiah tradition only the more interesting and inspiring.
And the legacy continues—for the second consecutive year (and we pray permanently)--with full orchestral accompaniment for the voices—IO strings, 2 trumpets, timpani, and organ--as Handel first conceived it, more than 280 years ago!
At the conclusion of Part l, there will be a brief opportunity for a freewill offering, Even with a principally voluntary community endeavor, such as Messiah in Mebane, the production is not without its costs. No donation is required, and may today's experience increase the bounty in all of our hearts and lives.
I would also like to extend our heartfelt gratitude to all those who have worked tirelessly to bring this concert to life--the musicians, the choir, the soloists, the dedicated volunteers, and generous donors in our community. Your passion and commitment inspire us all, and your gifts of time, talent, and treasure are a testament to the power of a community committed to a greater good!
