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Family Holiday Pops, A Family Favorite Once Again

by Emily Klopfer - Dimond High School

The crowd was thick outside the Atwood Concert Hall on Sunday, December 19^th. Anchorage’s Concert Chorus would soon be performing in front of a nearly sold-out audience, a size they had wished for, but never seen before.

As the time crept towards 4:00pm, the lights began to dim—and kept dimming. The Atwood Concert Hall was almost pitch black. Suddenly, a spotlight hit the stage, illuminating Grant Cochran, the conductor for the Anchorage Concert Chorus. As he raised his arms, the audience realized they were surrounded by members of the choir holding battery-powered candles. This incredible beginning with the ambience of candles and the enthusiasm of the audience set the stage for the ensuing performance.

Family Holiday Pops included a wide spectrum of Christmas music: family favorites, different interpretations of traditional songs, and those songs that have either never been heard before, or have not been heard for quite some time. These songs were sometimes sung solely by the Anchorage Concert Chorus, other times they were performed only by the Holiday Pops Orchestra, and sometimes both worked together to create that beloved holiday music.

The opening song, O Magnum Mysterium, was filled with mystery as members of the choir sang with candlelight. This song was followed by three others in which the chorus and the orchestra worked in tandem. The Sound of Christmas was solely a song for the orchestra, yet that quickly proved not to be a handicap. The orchestra was clear with both the string and band sections combining to create, well, the sound of Christmas. Throughout the performance, the string, horn, and percussion section shone.

Karl Hageman was the first vocal soloist on You’re a Mean One, Mr. Grinch. This holiday favorite soon also became an audience favorite as the Atwood erupted in applause following the song’s end. Tim Huffman was the second vocal soloist in what Cochran called a “father to daughter song,” Scarlet Ribbons. Both Huffman and the violin solo brought the song to life. The chimes at the end brought the holiday spirit back into the concert hall as the audience chuckled, thinking of Santa Claus. The final song before Intermission was Bellsong Fantasy. Cochran described this song “as if Carol of the Bells meet Rocky.” John Wasson, who arranged the song, had apparently previously written “pump-up” songs for the Dallas Cowboys. This past was evident in Bellsong Fantasy as the traditional Carol of the Bells did indeed adopt a Rocky feel.

Following Intermission, the concert carried the same amount of talent as it had displayed before. This half of the performance featured many more holiday favorites, yet still managed to include some that have not been heard before. ‘Twas the Night Before Christmas, was sang and read, and songs such as Let it Snow! Let it Snow! Let it Snow!; Rudolph, the Red-Nosed Reindeer; Jingle-Bell Rock; Silver Bells; and Frosty the Snowman, filled the hall.

As the Family Holiday Pops came to its end with Joy to the World, the audience was filled with a renewed sense of Christmas spirit. The audience’s love for the chorus, the orchestra, and the music, shows that the Anchorage Concert Chorus will have more than an enthusiastic welcome for next year’s Family Holiday Pops. As Grant Cochran said, and then later demonstrated through his excellent conducting of the concert, “what makes Christmas, is its music.”

Family Holiday Pops

Anchorage Concert Chorus

Sunday, December 19, 2010 at 4pm

Atwood Concert Hall