In collaboration with the Office of Faith & Spiritual Life, the Augustana School of Music (SoM) invites the public to join the university community for its 88th annual Christmas Vespers concert. This year’s theme, “O Come Let Us Adore Him,” is drawn from the treasured carol “O Come, All Ye Faithful.” At the heart of this lyric is an invitation to come, to see and to worship the infant Christ.
The 2025 Christmas Vespers performances will take place at Gloria Dei Lutheran Church in Sioux Falls. The first performance will be held on Friday, Dec. 5, at 7:30 p.m. along with two performances on Saturday, Dec. 6, at 4 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. If you’re unable to join in person, this year’s Christmas Vespers will be available for viewing via a 1-time livestream on Augustana's YouTube Channel on Dec. 6, at 7:30 p.m.
“Traditions like Christmas Vespers are vital to our community,” said Dr. Peter Folliard, Dean of the Augustana School of Music. “Our students are part of something far greater than themselves, their class or even their generation of Augustana musicians. Vespers is a tradition that connects us across time — uniting the entire Augustana community, their families and the greater Sioux Falls community in shared meaning and celebration.”
This year’s Christmas Vespers will feature the Augustana Choir, Augustana Bach Collegium, Angelus, VikingKor, Augustana Brass Choir, Augustana Trombone Choir and Jazz Combo.
“The annual Christmas Vespers production is a powerful tradition that brings together many students and faculty from the School of Music to celebrate the miracle of Jesus’ birth and the warmth of the season,” said Dr. Russell Svenningsen, associate professor of Music, director of vocal studies and conductor of The Augustana Choir and VikingKor. “Everyone is working very hard together to bring to life through music the central message of Christmas: salvation.”
Augustana has once again partnered with Thrivent for an initiative that supports the School of Music and its programming. Each year, from November through December, for every $1 donated to the SoM, Thrivent will match $1 — up to a total of $15,000. In addition, Thrivent will provide holiday cookies and hot cocoa after each performance.
For more information and to purchase tickets, visit augie.edu/vespers.
About Christmas Vespers
One of Augustana’s oldest and most beloved traditions made its debut on Dec. 18, 1938, when the Augustana Choir presented a service of Yuletide music to a full house in the gymnasium/chapel. This Vespers service ushered in the Advent and Christmas celebrations on campus — a tradition that continues to the present.
The first Vespers service was presented in three parts: The Prophecy of the Coming of the Christ Child, the Birth of the Savior and Praise of the Newborn Child. The Augustana Choir sang a majority of the program, but included a women’s trio, male quartet, male duet and female solo.
Christmas Vespers continued in this basic format for the next few years — evolving quickly into one of the college’s most popular and well-attended programs.