Walters, of Parsippany, is founder, conductor, and musical director of the Morris Choral Society. The award-winning society’s 85-member chorus performs locally and around the world, touring in England, Scotland, Wales, Ireland, France, Italy, The Czech Republic and Poland. Walters has been the recipient of numerous awards. In 1986, he was selected as Master Choral Teacher of the Year by the New Jersey Music Educators Association.

He also has received the Governor’s Award for Excellence in the Arts in Education Program in New Jersey, and in 2001 he was recognized by the Arts Council of the Morris Area as Outstanding Professional in the Arts. Walters was first asked to have the Morris Choral Society perform a holiday concert four years ago by Eric Hafen, artistic director of the Bickford Theatre. “Basically, we wanted to perform a family concert and Eric was very supportive,” Walters said.

“Traditionally, the first half of the concert is more serious, and the second half is a sing-along. This year, we patterned the first part of the concert as a rhythmic program . . . almost a vocal jazz program, while the second half is basically sing-along fun.” The Morris Choral Society also incorporates local talent into each of its Holiday Spectaculars.

Past guest performers have included the Cicely Tyson School of Performing and Fine Arts Harp Ensemble in 2005, and the Early Music Players, a medieval, renaissance, and baroque musical group, in 2006. “It’s a way of infusing local talent into the program,” Walters explained “We like showcasing local talent and performing a new program every holiday.