Re: Tuba Christmas in Woodstock IL


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Posted by Steve Marcus on October 07, 2003 at 07:23:57:

In Reply to: Tuba Christmas in Woodstock IL posted by David on October 07, 2003 at 05:47:22:

I understand that the management of the Woodstock Opera House made the costs of producing TubaChristmas there prohibitive.

It's a shame, because it was one of the best-organized, well-presented, and audience-supported TubaChristmases in the country. The mix of tubas and euphs among the 40-50 players was always healthy. They were well-behaved throughout the rehearsals and performances, and the ensemble actually sounded very decent. The intimacy of the Woodstock Opera House lent to a warm, friendly, non-circus-like atmosphere (quite different than some of the larger and rowdier TubaChristmases).
The community supported the annual TubaChristmas so well that TWO shows had to be presented to the 500+-seat Opera House audiences.

The show was well-produced. The same fellow (I'm sorry that I don't remember his name) would serve as emcee/banjo player, and he was very entertaining. There would be the common feature of showcasing the most unusual instruments that participants played (ophicleide, etc.). The emcee would play a guitar/banjo duet, and sing some songs. One year, he and I played a banjo/tuba duet (what else but "Dueling Banjos/Tubas"). Then the tuba/euph ensemble would play about 20 minutes of music from the green TubaChristmas books, including a sing-along.

In 1995, my brass quintet was the "opening act" for the Woodstock TubaChristmas, and also played in the reception room between the two performances. Who should walk in to the reception room but Mr. and Mrs. Harvey Phillips!





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