ROCKPORT — It took just a little bit of preaching and some moving solos for the Rev. Chantel Wright and her Songs of Solomon Gospel Choir to move the packed house inside the Rockport Opera House to clapping and stomping feet Saturday night.

The nationally and internationally acclaimed professional choir is comprised of young people, ages 16 to 22, and Saturday night’s ensemble came ready to move and give of themselves, which they did wholeheartedly. Reaching down deep to hit both high and low notes, they also sang long, strong and proud. The concert was presented by Bay Chamber Concerts.

During much of the performance, many members of the audience were moved to tears either by the words being sung, the obvious power and commitment to the verses of the songs being sung or the sheer talent of those singing, both as a group and as soloists.

If audience members did not leave the show feeling the spirit of the holidays, they certainly left feeling a whole lot of love, which Wright encouraged them to pass on like a light.

While the opera house was getting in the spirit, courtesy of the choir and their pastor hailing from New York City’s Harlem and the neighboring borough communities, others were ambling around Rockport Village, where 1,000 luminaries lit Pascal Avenue, Main Street and a short distance out Russell Avenue. Santa Claus was on hand and helped light the tree in Harbor Marine Park, and he also presided over an art lab for kids in Union Hall.

Around 5:30 p.m., fireworks began exploding over Rockport Harbor, on which lobster boats decorated with colored Christmas lights were bobbing to and fro. The holiday celebrations continued into the evening Saturday, since the snow had thus far not yet arrived, with many darting in and out of packed restaurants and shops for a bite to eat or drink, to do a little shopping and to just get warm and mingle with friends.

Said Mike Sabatini of Landmark Surveyors and Engineers, one of the many local businesses that contributed funding for the fireworks and other events, “This is really turning into a great annual event for Rockport.”

Village business owner Peter Ralston said, “The gospel choir could have heated all of Knox County with their warmth and performance.....simply amazing.”

Editorial Director Holly S. Edwards can be reached at hollyedwards@penbaypilot.com or 706-6655.