I’m pretty sure most people are familiar with the cutely animated “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer and the Island of Misfits,” or the special stop-motion animation of “A Year without Santa Claus,” and the catchy tune of “I’m Mr. White Christmas, I’m Mr. Snow…” sung by Snow Miser. Seasonal celebrations on a cold, wintry evening are most picturesquely imagined to be spent on drinking a warm cup of seasonal cheer, beside a cozy and warm fireplace, wrapped in a most comfortable blanket and watching those traditional holidays flicks with loved ones.
Christmas at the movies was a nostalgic and joyful rendition of seasonal favorites such as performing music from, among many others, “Miracle on 34 Street,” “Dr Seuss’ How The Grinch Stole Christmas,” “The Polar Express,” excerpts from “The Nutcracker Suite” and “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone.”
WeiJia (a fellow blogger) and I were extremely excited to learn that the tickets that the Calgary Civic Symphony wonderfully provided were general admission tickets for the seats in the Jack Singer Concert Hall, and arrived early to the performance in delighted anticipation. Our seats, the second row away from the grand stage, and in the very centre of the concert hall, proved be a very splendid experience. WeiJia and I sat right in front of the Concert Master, and watched in awe the artful execution of the orchestra up close, following their quick and powerful hand movements on their instruments. Sitting up close to the stage highlighted the cello section of the Calgary Civic Symphony, the low and harmonious sound of the cellos evoking the feelings of familiarity and peace. We had both also noticed that many of the talented musicians on stage were quite remarkably young, notably contrasting with some of the senior members of the Orchestra. The musicians forming the Calgary Civic Symphony come from all walks of life, all with different cultural tastes, but do not have to be professional artists themselves.
The highlight of the concert, personally for me, was the nostalgic rendition by the Calgary Civic Symphony of several excerpts from the Nutcracker Suite by the celebrated Russian composer, Pytor Tschaikovsky. Included were the Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy, Russian Dance, Arabian Dance, Waltz of the Flowers, Chinese Dance and the Dance of the Reed Flutes. However, before the concert had played excerpts from The Nutcracker Suite, Rolf Bertsch, the conductor and music director of the Calgary Civic Symphony had introduced a cutely dressed duck in a military uniform, “The Nut Quacker.” Humorously and musically quacking a song from The Nutcracker, that laid out the atmosphere of tradition and happiness. Eloquent and magical, these traditional melodies were a diverse mix of sound. Several movements were fiery and were built up- notably the Chinese Dance and the Russian Dance– to great tremors of suspense and sensation, releasing incredible sound much like igniting fireworks. Pieces such as the Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy and Arabian Dance were serene, peaceful and mysterious, with the Symphony’s excellent execution creating the perfect imagery in the audience of the Nutcracker actually being performed by ballet dancers. It wasn’t altogether necessary to have ballet dancers performing on the stage, as the orchestra’s fantastic interpretation of the piece Waltz of the Flowers did I imagine and feel the atmosphere of a lavish and expansive ballroom filled with graceful and joyful dancers smoothly waltzing across the entire room.
Towards the latter parts of the concert, the audience was invited to join into sing-alongs with Jorge Aviles, a talented Argentinean tenor. Possessing a smooth and excellent voice, Aviles lead the audience in Joy to the World, Silent Night, Angels We Have Heard on High (my personal favourite), and O Little Town of Bethlehem. Encouraging the audience to sing along, he showed some amazing vibrato and register he had possessed by asking the audience to warm up by attempting to copy some notes that he had sung. His compassionate and powerful voice was quite ear pleasing and was pleasantly complemented by the Orchestra.
Thanks to the Calgary Civic Symphony for providing seats to such a wonderful performance! I recommend all ages, young and old, to come down to the Jack Singer Concert Hall to hear the wonderful performances of the Calgary Civic Symphony!