mgpcpastor's blog

Well, this is, to use my youngest daughter’s favourite word of positive description, awesome, and very much worth your time to watch.

From the YouTube page where this is posted:

On Saturday, October 30, 2010, the Opera Company of Philadelphia brought together over 650 choristers from 28 participating organizations to perform one of the Knight Foundation’s “Random Acts of Culture” at Macy’s in Center City Philadelphia. Accompanied by the Wanamaker Organ – the world’s largest pipe organ – the OCP Chorus and throngs of singers from the community infiltrated the store as shoppers, and burst into a pop-up rendition of the Hallelujah Chorus from Handel’s “Messiah” at 12 noon, to the delight of surprised shoppers. This event is one of 1,000 “Random Acts of Culture” to be funded by the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation over the next three years.

HT: John Armstrong.

This is how the ‘Random Acts Of Culture’ website described the event:

The biggest Random Act of Culture yet took place in Philadelphia Saturday – with more than 650 singers bursting into Hallelujah from Handel’s Messiah in the middle of a downtown Macy’s. The world’s largest pipe organ – with 28,000 pipes – accompanied them.
I could go on, but the video tells the whole story. You can’t watch it and not be moved. Some viewers were moved to tears. It’s a great reminder of how important the classical arts are to our lives.
Thanks to Knight Foundation’s partner, the Opera Company of Philadelphia, for pulling the event off.
Knight Foundation is funding 1,000 Random Acts of Culture over the next three years. So if you live in any of these eight cities – Akron, Charlotte, Detroit, Macon, Philadelphia, San Jose, St. Paul and Miami – be on the lookout and have your cellphones ready.

So watch and enjoy.