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Staff writer

Sometimes matches are made in heaven; other times they’re made right here in Burns Township.

Internationally renowned singer Tony Sandler had been looking for a boys choir to perform in concert with him for some time and by sheer serendipity, his piano tuner said he should check out the Land of Lakes Choirboys.

When Sandler walked in the door where the boys rehearse in Burns Township, he said: “Oh my gosh! Did you hear that? This is what I’ve been looking for years, and it’s right under my nose.”

Craig Anderson, founding director and now conductor of the boys’ alumni choir, tells the story.

You don’t have to leave the country to hear world-class, top notch entertainment.

Sandler and the Land of Lakes Choirboys international touring Viking choir, under the direction of Francis Stockwell, are teaming in concert this holiday season to bring audiences the ultimate of holiday joy – “Come Spend Christmas with Me.”

They will perform three two-hour concerts at the Old Log Theater in Excelsior.

Sandler and the choir will perform independent sets of music and they will sing ensemble.

“This was a total surprise to me to find this excellence close to home,” Sandler said in a phone interview about the boys’ sound. “It’s not nationwide, it’s international in my opinion.”

Some of the songs the boys will sing are: “Deck the Halls,” “The Holly and the Ivy,” “Oh, Holy Night” and “Jingle Bells.”

In their choral tradition, they will sing in a variety of languages: Flemish, French, Tyrolean, Czech and Austrian dialect and Italian. For instance, they will sing: “Schlafe, Mine Prinzchen,” an Austrian folk song, “Il Est Ne’ Le Divin enfant,” a traditional French carol and “Gesü Bambino,” by Italian composer Pietro Yon, to name a few. They will also sing Caesar Frank’s “Panis Angelicus” (bread of angels) in Latin.

  He sang in a boys’ choir

A native of Belgium, Sandler’s illustrious career skyrocketed from teen singing sensation, to recording contracts, to performing on stages across western Europe and then to the United States, where he has appeared in Las Vegas, the Catskills hotels and more with singing partner Ralph Young as the dynamic duo Sandler and Young.

But it was his stint in a boys choir that influenced Sandler’s musical prowess.

As a 10-year-old choirboy he sang solos in a sweet soprano voice. The group sang mostly Gregorian chant, in which “you have to feel the rhythm,” Sandler said.

He became a member of Les Petits Chanteurs a la Croix de Buis (Little Singers of the Wooden Cross), where he performed for Pope Pius in Rome. Sandler likens the choir to the Vienna Boys Choir.

The group sang “strictly in cathedral to cathedral, church to church, and vespers to you name it,” Sandler said.

At age 18, Sandler recorded for Novelty records. His fame soon spread throughout Belgium to western Europe, where he cut a whirlwind of recordings that rocketed him to international fame.

From 1956 to 1963, he recorded more than 100 singles in Europe. He has performed on stage, television, recording sessions and, then, in the 1960s he teamed with singer Ralph Young.

A popular duo

The debonair duo, Sandler and Young, appeared on Johnny Carson, Ed Sullivan, Red Skelton, Andy Williams, Merve Griffin shows and more.

Sandler now appears in five different shows ranging from “Chevalier – Maurice and Me,” about the life and music of Maurice Chevalier, to “My Paris,” to his current “Come Spend Christmas With Me.”

“This is a warm and heartfelt show that brings people together to be entertained with music that is heard only at this time of year,” Sandler said on his Web site.

You can check out the colorful and extraordinary Web site that chronicles not only his career but gives a historical perspective as well at www.tonysandler.com. Also, additional regional concerts dates with the choirboys are listed.

Sandler has plans to perform a PBS special with the LOL Choirboys in the future.

The choirboys have appeared internationally. Last year they appeared in a holiday concert at Orchestra Hall with trumpeter Doc Severinsen, the late Johnny Carson’s music director.

In addition to the concerts with Sandler, the choirboys will present their 32nd annual Christmas concert of their own at Elk River High School, Dec. 15, 2 p.m. in the Zabee Theater. A free will offering will be taken. A popular bake sale will be held as well. The school is located at 900 School St.