Celebrate Christmas - Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra, the Graduate Choir of NZ and Teddy Tahu Rhodes - Holy Trinity Cathedral

Auckland's Philharmonia Orchestra illustrated why it's seen as the jewel in the city's entertainment crown with a breathtaking performance on Friday night.

The orchestra, in its 34th year, combined with baritone Teddy Tahu Rhodes and the Graduate Choir of New Zealand for Celebrate Christmas, the orchestra's annual concert combining traditional carols with orchestral pieces inspired by the Nativity scene.

The beautiful acoustics at the spacious Holy Trinity Cathedral provided the perfect setting for the concert, with the coloured lights dispersed throughout the cathedral only adding to the aura and wonder of the night.

The night started with a three-man rendition of Benjamin Britten's Fanfare for St Edmundsbury to herald the start of the concert in quite the official tone.

From there the beautiful string section nurtured the audience with a beautiful performance of Torelli's Christmas Concerto, led by the highly acclaimed Andrew Beer and the dynamic Diana Cochrane.

There were highlights aplenty in a concert that was full of colour and provided plenty of Christmas cheer for the sold-out crowd.

But the standout was The Trumpet Shall Sound and For Unto Us a Child is Born, two pieces chosen from Handel's Messiah oratorio. Rhodes' clarity was complemented superbly by the soft undertones of the choir and the natural timbre of the orchestra.

Guest conductor Ben Northey was superb and controlled the orchestra, and at times the choir, with precision. At times, Northey felt more like a storyteller - guiding the audience through each piece while highlighting important contributions from the wind section, the percussion section (including an amazing triangle performance) and the woodwind section.

Rhodes proved his ability with a dramatic performance, particularly during The Trumpet Shall Sound from Handel's famed Messiah oratorio. The 48-year-old controlled his vibrato superbly and illustrated why he has performed in some of the most prestigious theatres in the world.

The Graduate Choir of New Zealand was also stunning. Their rendition of the Donkey Carol, in particular, left this former choir singer feeling at peace.

How fitting, then, that the final song of the night was a rendition of Silent Night performed in Maori and English performed by the choir and the audience. There was a collective sigh of content following the performance and the crowd gave the orchestra, choir and Rhodes their due appreciation.

Friday's concert was a timely reminder of the powerful effect of live orchestra. It can stun, amaze or even shock. But it can also nurture, embrace and calm anyone in attendance and the latter was certainly prevalent on the night.

Anyone looking for an example of the significance of Christmas should go to this annual concert to listen back on some of the best Christmas-inspired music ever. I'll be there with bells on next time.