Home for Christmas – Program

A Celebration of 60 Years

The CBS Band is home for the holidays,
with a night of fabulous live music,
a delicious turkey dinner, and festive raffles!

The CBS Concert Band and Jazz Band perform at
All Saints Parish Hall
Saturday, November 23, 2024

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Frosty the Snowman   arr. Jerry Nowak
This popular winter song first recorded by Gene Autry in 1950 ▶, was written after the success of Autry’s recording of “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer” the previous year. Like “Rudolph”, “Frosty” was subsequently adapted to other media including a popular television special.
It is generally regarded as a Christmas song, although Christmas itself is never mentioned in the lyrics. A Phil Spector-produced 1963 cover by The Ronettes is a popular version ▶, featuring in Rolling Stone‘s list of “The Greatest Rock & Roll Christmas Songs“.

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I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day   arr. Jerry Nowak
This Christmas carol is based on the 1863 poem “Christmas Bells” by American poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. It tells of the narrator hearing Christmas bells during the American Civil War, but despairing that “hate is strong and mocks the song of peace on earth, good will to men”. After much anguish and despondency the carol concludes with the bells ringing out with resolution that “God is not dead, nor doth He sleep” and that there will ultimately be “peace on earth, good will to men”.
Bing Crosby recorded the song in 1956 ▶, using a melody composed by Johnny Marks.

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Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree   arr. Jerry Nowak
Brenda Lee recorded the rockabilly Christmas classic in 1958, when she was only 13 years old.
In 2023, she released a music video ▶ for the song, and the song topped the US Billboard Hot 100 chart, making Lee the oldest artist ever to top the Hot 100, at age 78! The song also set the record for the longest period of time between an original release and its topping the Hot 100 (65 years).

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Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer   arr. Jerry Nowak
Here’s the Johnny Marks composition that became a No. 1 hit for Gene Autry on the U.S. charts in Christmas 1949 ▶. The song is based on the 1939 story Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer published by the Montgomery Ward department store.
A memorable version is Burl Ives’ 1964 recording ▶ for the soundtrack of the holiday TV special.
In 2024, Autry’s recording was inducted into the National Recording Registry by the Library of Congress as being ”culturally, historically or aesthetically significant”.

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A Holly Jolly Christmas   arr. Jerry Nowak
Most famously performed by Burl Ives, this song also featured in the 1964 “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer” TV special, in which he voiced the narrator, Sam the Snowman. Ives recorded a new version ▶ of it for his 1965 Christmas album “Have a Holly Jolly Christmas”.
In 2011, Michael Bublé released a cover of the song ▶ on his album “Christmas”, one of the best-selling Christmas albums worldwide.

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The Christmas Waltz   arr. Jerry Nowak
“The Christmas Waltz” was written for Frank Sinatra in 1954 ▶ by Sammy Cahn and Jule Styne. Ironically, like Irving Berlin’s “White Christmas” and Leroy Anderson’s “Sleigh Ride”, it was composed in the heat of summer.
It has been covered many times over the years by a wide variety of artists, including Peggy Lee (1960) ▶, Doris Day (1964) ▶, the Carpenters (1978 ▶, remixed in 2024 ▶), Harry Connick Jr. (2003) ▶, She & Him (2011) ▶, and most recently Laufey (2022) ▶.

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O Tannenbaum   arr. Kevin J. McElrath
The music of “O Tannenbaum” (“Oh Christmas Tree”) dates back as far as the 16th century, and appears to have originally accompanied a German folk song that contrasted the faithful bloom of a fir tree with the unsteadiness of a fickle love. The song eventually evolved into the popular Christmas carol as it is known today ▶, honoring the fir tree’s consistency and its exemplification of hope, love, and faithfulness.
This arrangement, inspired by the Count Basie ballads of the late 1950s and 60s, is played in a medium-swing style similar to that of the Basie recording “L’il Darlin’” ▶.

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Have a Cool Yule!   arr. Mike Lewis
Swing into the holiday season with this jazzed-up medley of favorite carols!
After a short “Jingle Bell” intro, the saxes take over on “God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen“; followed by “Jolly Old St. Nicholas“; “Up On The Housetop“; and “Deck The Halls“.

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White Christmas   arr. Roger Holmes
It was a peaceful song that became a wartime classic. Its unorthodox, melancholy melody, and mere 54 words, expressing the simple yearning for a return to happier times, sounded instantly familiar when sung by America’s favorite crooner. Bing Crosby‘s version ▶ is the world’s best-selling single, with estimated sales in excess of 50 million copies worldwide.
In the musical film Holiday Inn, the composition won the 1942 Academy Award for Best Original Song. The song would feature in another Crosby film, the musical White Christmas, which became the highest-grossing film of 1954.

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Christmas, Baby Please Come Home   Darlene Love
“Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)” is a pop song originally sung by Darlene Love ▶ and included on the 1963 seasonal compilation album, A Christmas Gift for You from Phil Spector.
Upon release, the song did not find commercial success but in later years, it has gone on to become a Christmas standard. The song has been covered by Mariah Carey ▶, Michael Bublé ▶, and U2 ▶, among others.
In 2023, Cher recorded a duet version ▶ with Love for her album Christmas, after originally singing backing vocals for Love’s version in 1963.

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The Sussex Carol   arr. Douglas Brooks-Davies
The “Sussex Carol” is a Christmas carol popular in Britain, sometimes referred to by its first line “On Christmas night all Christians sing” ▶. Its words were first published by Luke Wadding, a late 17th-century poet and bishop of the Catholic Church in Ireland, in a work called Small Garland of Pious and Godly Songs (1684). The folk melody originally came from the town of Monk’s Gate in Sussex (hence “Sussex Carol”).
A festive and triumphant song, it proclaims to the world the message of peace and goodwill given by angels to the shepherds that first Christmas night.

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Ding Dong Merrily on High   arr. Douglas Brooks-Davies
The tune first appeared as a secular dance tune known under the title “Branle de l’Official” in Orchésographie, a dance book written by the French cleric, composer and writer Thoinot Arbeau, pen name of Jehan Tabourot (1519–1593). The words are by the English composer George Ratcliffe Woodward (1848–1934), and the carol was first published in 1924 in his The Cambridge Carol-Book: Being Fifty-two Songs for Christmas, Easter, And Other Seasons ▶.
Woodward took an interest in church bell ringing, which no doubt aided him in writing it!

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Home for the Holidays   arr. Larry Clark
From its wistful, richly voiced chorale opening to its upbeat, happy swing section, this arrangement of the popular song first recorded by Perry Como in 1954 ▶ expresses the holiday spirit with genuine warmth!

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A Christmas Portrait   arr. Jerry Nowak
Here’s Jerry again, with a medley of holiday favorites:
“It’s Beginning To Look A Lot Like Christmas” ▶,
“The Christmas Song” ▶, and
“We Need A Little Christmas” ▶.

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A Christmas Festival   Leroy Anderson
The famous work by Leroy Anderson against which all other Christmas medleys are judged!
Composed for orchestra, “A Christmas Festival” was first performed and recorded in 1950 by the Boston Pops, with Arthur Fiedler conducting ▶.
Including: “Joy To the World“, “Deck the Halls“, “God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen“, “Good King Wenceslas“, “Hark! The Herald Angels Sing“, “Silent Night“, “Jingle Bells“, and “Adeste Fideles“, this sparkling arrangement encompasses the joy, celebration, and solemnity of Christmas.

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Sleigh Ride   Leroy Anderson
Another perennial Leroy Anderson favorite!
Though composed during a severe heat wave in the summer of 1946, this piece has been a fixture with holiday concerts for more than seventy-five years. The song does not make any specific reference to Christmas, but the seasonal imagery has made it very much associated with the holiday. It’s hard to think of a sleigh in winter without thinking of Santa!
For some amusement, watch Shaquille O’Neal, in black tie and tails, make his conducting debut leading the Boston Pops Orchestra and Tanglewood Festival Chorus in this rendition ▶.

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The Night Before Christmas   arr. James Swearingen
Both young and old alike will delight in this special musical presentation of Clement Clarke Moore‘s Christmas poem “The Night Before Christmas“. It is a tradition in many homes to read the poem, written in 1822, every Christmas Eve.
Here the narration is set amidst familiar Christmas carols, including: “Ding Dong! Merrily On High” ▶; “Jingle Bells” ▶; “Up On the Housetop” ▶; “Jolly Old St. Nicholas” ▶ and “We Wish You a Merry Christmas” ▶.

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A Home Alone Christmas   arr. Paul Lavender
The themes from the first two “Home Alone” movies are included in this delightful showcase for the holidays. You will love the fun and heartwarming songs from these now classic films.
Titles include: “Somewhere in My Memory” ▶; “The Plaza Hotel” ▶; “My Christmas Tree” ▶; “Setting the Trap” ▶; “Christmas Star” ▶; and “Merry Christmas, Merry Christmas” ▶.

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Fairytale of New York   arr. Sean O’Loughlin
The boys of the NYPD choir were singing “Galway Bay”
And the bells were ringing out for Christmas day!
Recorded by the Celtic punk band The Pogues and featuring singer Kirsty MacColl, “Fairytale of New York” ▶ was released in 1987 and has remained an enduring and popular holiday favorite ever since. Comprised of two main sections, the opening is melancholy and lyrical, followed by the second part in a driving and energetic Irish-flavored groove.
The NYPD does not actually have a choir, it’s their Emerald Society Pipes and Drums who appear in the music video. They didn’t know the words to “Galway Bay“, so are instead singing the “Mickey Mouse March“!
For a special treat, watch Jimmy Fallon and Saoirse Ronan nail their rendition on the Tonight Show ▶.

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The Polar Express   arr. Jerry Brubaker
A young boy who has grown sceptical of Santa Claus is shocked to see a train stop outside his window on Christmas Eve, destined for the North Pole!
Released in 2004, The Polar Express was the first feature-length film to be entirely created using motion capture technology. Tom Hanks voiced not one but six different characters in the movie: the Conductor, the Hobo, Santa Claus, the Ebenezer Scrooge puppet , the Narrator, and the nameless boy protagonist, who is known only as ‘Hero Boy’.
You can ride the Polar Express at tourist attractions around the world now! You’ll find Polar Express-themed rides and trains in the Grand Canyon, Canada’s Badlands and in the UK.
This blockbuster Alan Silvestri and Glen Ballard film score has been masterfully arranged here for symphonic band. The medley includes “Believe” ▶; “The Polar Express” ▶; “When Christmas Comes to Town” ▶; and “Spirit of the Season” ▶.

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The Nutcracker Suite   arr. Clair W. Johnson
The Nutcracker, a classic Christmas story, is a fairy tale ballet in two acts centered on a family’s Christmas Eve celebration.
Alexandre Dumas’s adaptation of the story was set to music by Tchaikovsky, commissioned by Moscow’s Imperial Theatres, and premiered a week before Christmas 1892. Since premiering in western countries in the 1940s, this ballet has become perhaps the most popular to be performed around Christmas time.
The composer made a selection of eight of the more popular pieces before the ballet’s 1892 premiere, forming what is currently known as the Nutcracker Suite, Op. 71a. The suite became instantly popular; however the complete ballet did not achieve its great popularity as a Christmas performance event until almost 100 years later.
Selections included in this arrangement are “March” ▶ ; “Dance of the Sugar-Plum Fairy” ▶ ; “Arabian Dance” ▶ ; “Waltz of the Flowers” ▶ ; and “Russian Dance” ▶.

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Christmas Eve/Sarajevo 12/24   arr. Bob Phillips & George Megaw
As seen in the mind-boggling Trans-Siberian Orchestra stage show! ▶
This thought-provoking medley ▶ of the Christmas tunes “God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen” and “Carol of the Bells” portrays a lone performer playing Christmas carols in the midst of the Bosnian war, reflecting on the power of music to bring hope.

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Celtic Carol   arr. Robert W. Smith
What better choice for an encore than this simply spectacular seasonal selection that has become a signature Christmas piece for the CBS Concert Band?
The familiar Celtic tune “Greensleeves” ▶ used in the carol “What Child Is This?” ▶ takes on a folkdance character here that really gets whipped into a frenzy! Active woodwind parts and folk drum effects build the momentum until you are completely caught up in it, with much the same appeal as music from “Riverdance“.

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MUSIC DIRECTOR AND CONDUCTOR
Jeff Stentaford

GUEST CONDUCTOR
Terry Howlett

CONCERT BAND MUSICIANS

JAZZ BAND MUSICIANS

A CELEBRATION OF 60 YEARS

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“Happy Christmas to all, and to all a good night!”

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