It’s the most wonderful time of the year! Christmas is right around the corner, and so are the PAHS annual holiday concerts. Every year, both the choir and band host concerts showcasing a variety of holiday songs from familiar festive tunes to cultural holiday music, and many more.
This year, an additional concert has been added, small ensembles. Small ensembles showcase smaller bands such as jazz band, brass choir, and saxophone quartet. You can expect a mix of both the choir and the band at small ensembles.
Preparing for the holiday season is stressful and takes preparation, especially for our music directors. Choir director Emma Libby has had rehearsals for the holiday choir concert since the beginning of the school year. Band director Katelyn Reichard works down to the wire, since marching band season only ends in early November. There are a variety of factors that impact putting a concert together.
“My first battle is finding a wide range of music so we don’t play the same thing again, and also finding different styles of music that the kids want to play. One of the hardest battles is finding songs that match our current skill level.” Band director Katelyn Reichard said.
Reichard elaborated, “In such a large band, with different levels of musical ability, we have to change and adjust as we go along the season. Band students can expect having songs pulled, but also having a new one added a few weeks in advance.”
This is a big year for the music ensembles, with over 20 seniors in this year’s graduating class, and over 70 students in both ensembles combined. Band President Senior Evrett Walters handpicked out one of the songs, Patapan, for the holiday band concert.
“I picked Patapan to really show off the skills of the members in our band, it is a very challenging piece. The percussion section is also featured throughout the arrangement, so I had to recommend this song.” Being a senior with such a large class makes it hard to leave for Walters.
“It’s my last time playing Christmas music with all of my friends in the band, and this concert has been one of my favorites I do every year. I’ve always looked forward to this concert, even since freshman year, and I’ll miss performing Sleigh Ride with the band once I graduate.”
The holiday choir concert was held on Thursday, December 11. The choir sang songs such as Carol of the Bells, Dreidel, and Frozen Heart. For Senior Kiley Cassel, her favorite song was the First Noel. Both the band and choir collaborate for certain songs, such as Holly Jolly Christmas, with accompanying instruments such as Senior Tyler Sibbett on drumset and Junior Jake Powers on bass guitar. Jake Powers was also featured on baritone for a brass trio, and enjoyed the experience.
“It’s always exciting to be part of an ensemble of any kind here, because there’s a lot of passion that goes into every production we do.” Despite not being part of the choir, Powers appreciates them.
“It’s satisfying to watch the choir and accompaniment grow and improve with each concert, and I’m looking forward to seeing what we can accomplish together next.”
The next concert is the holiday small ensembles, which will be held on Tuesday, December 16 at 7 PM. The holiday band concert will be held on Thursday, December 18 at 7 PM. Impeding weather could impact concert schedules. Make sure to hop on your sleigh ride and come see our talented musicians at PAHS!