MSDB's Expressions of Silence Choir will present its annual Christmas celebration at 2 p.m., with a social to follow. Sunday's performance is the group's main fundraiser and features students signing, and maybe even dancing, along to some holiday favorites.

Jennifer Wasson, concert co-director, along with Dessica Wilson, said the students look forward to this performance more than to any of their other shows.

"This is their busy time of year, and with so many people coming each year, they get really excited," she said.

Wilson said that because the students listen and enjoy music differently than those who can hear, they bring a unique perspective to the songs.

Their originality shines through in their facial expressions, body movement and rhythm in which they move their bodies, Wasson said.

"It's everything. How they use their body and facial expressions are just as important as the signing," she said.

If the body movements and facial expressions propel the show, Wasson and Wilson's work behind the scenes is the sail that makes the performance soar. For the past 11 years, the women have helped the hearing-impaired students embrace the songs and create an entertaining act.

Fourteen-year-old Isaac Jones and 16-year-old Thyra Wood, veterans in the group, said that without Wasson and Wilson at the helm they wouldn't have a show.

"They do a great job," Wood said. "They help us with our rhythm, our timing, when to move and when to stay still. They're making the songs fun for us, definitely."

Wasson said seeing the students perform year in and out is a bittersweet experience. She loves watching them grow up, but it's hard to see them leave the stage for the final time.

"They start out real young, and you see them get better and better each year. Certain songs remind you of certain kids. It is neat to see them build self-confidence and grow out of their shell," she said.

Wasson said the students' favorite songs year in and year out are the sassy "Santa Baby" and the traditional "Most Wonderful Time of the Year."

Jones and Wood, who have performed for the school for four and three years, respectively, take great pride in proving to people that they can express themselves just as well as those who can hear.

"It's important because we get to show people we're capable of performing. We just use different methods," Wood said.

"Our performing helps support deaf people overcome the fear of not being able to do things like this," Jones said.

It also helps the school raise money for their traveling budget for the next year.

Wasson said she expects anywhere from 100 to 200 people to attend the performance and said the show often exceeds the proceeds from their April fundraiser.

"This is our big moneymaker, and the kids get excited because it raises money for us to travel," she said.

When they're not rehearsing, the group also performs other shows around Great Falls and the surrounding area.

Wasson said they regularly play at the Great Falls Christmas Stroll and at almost any other type of gathering.

"We do it all," Wasson said.

In years past, in addition to playing for schools, nursing homes and retirement homes, the group performed at the Montana Exceptional Children Conference and for the Montana Legislature.

Admission to Sunday's concert is $5 per person or $20 for a family of six.

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