first thoughts  Angela Lehman-Rios  

Christmas, 1978. My uncle Glenn sits down at the piano at my grandparents' house. Someone passes around copies of the score to Handel's "Messiah." Glenn plays a few measures, then my father, his siblings, a few aunts and uncles and cousins, start to sing.
 
I squeeze in among the adults to listen as they sing through the major choruses, with perhaps more ardor than accuracy. When we get to the "Hallelujah" Chourus, I try singing along.
 
These moments--we did this every year for a span of years during my childhood--are some of my most treasured Christmas memories.
 
For a long time, my brother and I were the only children on that side of the family, so otherwise, my Christmas memories are full of adults doing adult things--talking, mainly. Most of the time, I wasn't interested. But to stand among them and sing was a powerful experience.
 
For that hour or so, those grown-ups weren't teaching me anything, they weren't telling me what to do, they weren't patronizing me by letting me win at a game. We were equals in the desire to make music together.
 
Our children have so many chances to do things with other children--and that's good, of course. But it's also good to remember the value of allowing them to participate in an adult world sometimes, too.
 
So that's why I'm looking forward to December 9, when the Richmond Symphony is hosting a "Come and Play" concert. Any musician in the Richmond area--young or old, new or experienced--may register and play together with symphony members in a concert at Virginia Commonwealth University's Siegel Center. The Symphony will send music to participants ahead of time, graded to different skill levels. After rehearsing all afternoon on the 9th, everyone will perform at 6 p.m.
 
My daughter Emily plays the violin and I play the cello. We've already signed up. There's a nominal fee to participate, and the concert is free for listeners. However, donations will be accepted through the Bryan and Kathryn Harvey Foundation and will go toward purchasing and repairing instruments for students in Richmond Public Schools.
 
For more information about being involved in "Come and Play," visit www.richmondsymphony.com. The deadline for registration is November 30. The website also includes details about the performance and about the Harvey Foundation.

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