A Most Wonderful Christmas
arr. Robert Sheldon
In this fun opening medley, you’ll find Winter Wonderland, I’ll Be Home for Christmas, Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas and It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year in cheery settings that lift the spirits!
– Program note from publisher
Snow on Snow
Megan Vinther
Megan Vinther’s Snow on Snow is a reflection of the beauty of winter and the serene stillness of gently falling snow. Haunting and tender original melodies weave intricately together with Gustav Holst’s In the Bleak Midwinter. With rich harmonic progression and delicate textures, this piece captures the quiet, introspective mood of gazing out at snow-covered landscapes. Snow on Snow invites listeners to pause and enjoy a calm, peaceful moment in the midst of what can be a chaotic season.
– Program Note by composer
Eight Nights of Light
Jonathan Leshnoff
This lively medley of traditional Hanukkah and Jewish tunes includes the tunes O Chanukah; Sivivon Sov Sov Sov; Maoz Tzur; Mi Yi’ malel and Vi’ ya’ datem. This arrangement is rooted in my childhood days when my family would gather around the menorah and warm the cold winter nights with singing and inspiration. I originally made the medley for piano and my own personal use. The vast majority of tunes are traditional, but I introduced a new tune by a contemporary rabbi who has been very important to me.
– Program Note adapted from publisher and composer
Concert Selections from The Polar Express
Alan Silvestri and Glen Ballard / arr. Jerry Brubaker
This medley from the popular children’s movie includes Believe, The Polar Express, When Christmas Comes to Town and Spirit of the Season. Based on the children’s book by Chris Van Allsburg, the story teaches about friendship, bravery and the spirit of Christmas in an amazing magical adventure to the North Pole on Christmas Eve aboard The Polar Express. The song Believe was nominated for Best Original Song at the 77th Academy Awards and won a Grammy in 2006. The film tells the story of a young boy who, on Christmas Eve, sees a mysterious train bound for the North Pole stop outside his window and is invited aboard by its conductor. The boy joins several other children as they embark on a journey to visit Santa Claus preparing for Christmas. The film stars Tom Hanks, with Daryl Sabara, Nona Gaye, Jimmy Bennett and Eddie Deezen.
– Program Note adapted from Wikipedia and the Cypress Symphonic Band concert program, 10 December 2016
We Need a Little Christmas
Jerry Herman / arr. Ted Ricketts
We Need a Little Christmas is a popular Christmas song originating from Jerry Herman’s Broadway musical Mame and first performed by Angela Lansbury in that 1966 production. In the musical, the song is performed after Mame has lost her fortune in the Wall Street Crash of 1929, and decides that she, her young nephew Patrick, and her two household servants “need a little Christmas now” to cheer them up. The original lyrics include the line, “But, Auntie Mame, it’s one week past Thanksgiving Day now!” Since the time the song was written the phenomenon of Christmas creep has resulted in the normal holiday season beginning much earlier than it once did, which has led to more recent recordings changing the line to, “But, Auntie Mame, it’s one week from Thanksgiving Day now!”
– Program Note from Wikipedia
Selections from Home Alone
Leslie Bricusse and John Williams / arr. Paul Lavender
John Williams’s delightful score is a memorable part of this blockbuster movie which is celebrating its 35th anniversary this year. Audiences and performers alike are sure to fall in love with this magical setting that includes: Holiday Flight, Glorious Thieves, Somewhere In My Memory, The House and Star of Bethlehem.
– Program Notes adapted from the publisher
Country Cookin’ Christmas
Jeff Simmons
In this arrangement by Jeff Simmons, traditional Christmas melodies are surrounded with an atmosphere of country-styled sounds and effects that prove to be truly genuine to the country and bluegrass genre. The “man with the bag” meets “the man in black” in this new, hoedown holiday medley.
– Program Note adapted from the publisher
Sleigh Ride
Leroy Anderson
Sleigh Ride is a light, orchestra standard composed by Leroy Anderson. The composer formed the original idea for the piece during a heat wave in July 1946, and he finished the work in February 1948. The original recordings were instrumental versions. The lyrics, about riding in a sleigh and other fun wintertime activities, were written by Mitchell Parish in 1950. The orchestral version was first recorded in 1949 by Arthur Fiedler and the Boston Pops Orchestra. A selection of the artists who have recorded it include Herb Alpert, The Andrews Sisters, The Carpenters, Bing Crosby, The Boston Pops Orchestra, Ella Fitzgerald, the amazing Debbie Gibson, The Muppets, and Andy Williams.
– Program Note adapted from Wikipedia