To the editor:

I was in the chorus of KU’s Holiday Vespers on Sunday and was rather surprised to learn from Ann Colebank that there was a “political rally” at the performance (Public Forum, Dec. 8). I do not recall seeing any rally happening before either of the performances.

Ms. Colebank’s accusations are so vague it is difficult to tell what, exactly, she is talking about. Every comment I heard about the show was praising our variety of pieces and great performance. If she was objecting to our one Jewish and single Kwanzaa song, she should realize that Vespers is a holiday concert, not just Christmas.

If she was referring to the Michael Jackson song with the video depicting the poor and downtrodden, followed by photographs of people who devoted their lives to helping the lowly and serving others, like Martin Luther King Jr. and Mother Teresa, then I fail to see the political statements being made. The message was not a political one, but one in which to remember that Christmas is a time to think about the less fortunate and how you can help them. I am sorry for Ms. Colebank not getting the message, but I can assure her no one in the School of Music was trying to hold a political rally.

Our message was intended to be peace, love and kindness to others, but we’ll try our best to keep it rally-free next year.