Mannheim Steamroller Christmas by Chip Davis

Mannheim Steamroller. Photo credit: Victor L Dammer
Mannheim Steamroller. Photo credit: Victor L Dammer
Rating
4.7/5

Christmas is a magical time of year, and audiences at the Mayo Performance Art Center (MPAC) in Morristown, NJ, gathered to hear the Mannheim Steamroller Christmas by Chip Davis for two magnificent performances on December 3rd.

Most of the traditional music you know from the holiday season, the tunes you can hum in your head, are played during the two-hour concert. Not only was the music spectacular, but the images on the interactive screen behind the group were a pleasure to the eye, and so were the special effects.

Chip Davis, the founder of Mannheim Steamroller, modernized the traditional Christmas music by blending it with rock and new age, bringing a beat that all enjoyed. One can best describe the music style by knowing the definition of a Mannheim steamroller, an 18th-century technique known as the crescendo that escalates the volume. Using drums, harpsichords and keyboards, bass, stringed instruments, percussion, and recorders all added to the excitement of the two-hour concert.

The ever-so-popular show celebrating over 40 years of entertaining audiences has two separate performing casts. Drummer Tom Sharpe introduced the Red Tour ensemble playing at MPAC, who opened with Joy to the World. Mannheim’s upbeat version of Greensleeves, featuring on-screen Elyse Davis on vocals, was followed by Good King Wenceslas, in which drummer Tom Sharpe appeared to be having the most fun, throwing his drumsticks up in the air in moments of excitement.

Mannheim Steamroller in Concert.. Photo credit: Victoria L Dammer

Mannheim Steamroller in Concert.. Photo credit: Victoria L Dammer

A piano solo started O’ Little Town of Bethlehem, and the musicians introduced cymbals, followed by bells and a violin solo, adding chimes and the harpsichord as each stanza progressed. It was soul-stirring, and the audience responded with loud applause.

As fog engulfed the stage, with visions of dolphins and whales, birds and waves breaking on the beach, heavy drums opened the breathtaking version of Come Home to the Sea, a tribute to the powerfulness of nature. This song elicited emotions all around the theater, and we saw concertgoers wiping tears from their eyes; it was exceptional. After intermission and keeping with Davis’s conservational theme from Yellowstone The Music of Nature, the band played Morning, with stirring aerial pictures of the park on display. In 1991, the song was nominated for a Grammy and Davis has donated more than $750,000 to preserve our nation’s first National Park.

The engaging sound of bongos played during Deck the Halls. We Three Kings featured the alluring sound of a recorder, and snow swirled throughout the theater as the last songs played. Carol of the Bells had a thunderous drum roll, and the encore performance of Silent Night rang through the air with the sound of sleigh bells and an overall feeling of peace.

Davis appeared on screen and told the story of how music execs told him, “Don’t do a Christmas album; it will ruin your career,” but the standing ovation proved they were wrong.

The running time is approximately 2 hours with intermission.

Mannheim Steamroller Christmas by Chip Davis featuring concertmaster and violin by Mark Agnor; drums by Tom Sharpe; harpsichord and keyboards by Anna Lackaff; keyboards by David Plank; bass and stringed instruments by Christopher Forte; percussion and recorders by Reed Flygt. With tour manager Chelsea Langord; production assistant Kristin Ginther; production manager Pete Franks; stage manager Will Townsend; merchandise manager Nicole Hetlyn; video technician Christian Behm; lighting director Adam Zastro; lighting technician Ben Shepherd; FOH audio Timothy Zick; audio technician Micah Stryker; band bus driver Jimmy Orcutt; and crew bus driver Newt Norris.

The Mayo Performing Art Center, 100 South Street, Morristown, NJ 07960.

Tickets to events are available at The Official Ticketing Site of Mayo Performing Arts Center | Mayo Performing Arts Center (mayoarts.org)

Readers may also enjoy our reviews of the Kat and Dave Show Laughter Comes to Morristown, NJ Ballet at MPAC, and the Music of Sam Cooke and Marvin Gaye

Mannheim Steamroller Christmas by Chip Davis

PLEASE COMMENT & SIGN UP

Subscribe
Notify of
guest

0 Comments
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments

More to explore...

The home of Electric Lemon at 33 Hudson Yards, New York NY. Photo by Sora Vernikoff

Electric Lemon at Hudson Yards

The Electric Lemon restaurant is located at the top of the five-star Equinox Hotel in Hudson Yards. The rooftop bar boasts an 8,000-square-foot rooftop garden with a monumental Jaume Plensa sculpture. It overlooks the Hudson River and the city skyline. They possess a wide range of food and drinks, from light bites to seasonal offerings at dinner and rooftop brunch on the weekends. It’s open all year round because of the sleek and expansive dining room and fire-pits on the al fresco terrace.

Audrey Hepburn in Breakfast at Tiffany's. Photo from the official trailer. Public Domain

Breakfast at Tiffany’s

I suppose that the title of my blog post, Breakfast at Tiffany’s, is a little misleading because it turned out to be Dinner at Tiffany’s, or more accurately, Dinner at the Blue Box Café. This Cafe honors the romance of the 1961 film starring Audrey Hepburn. Tiffany’s of course was the romantic setting where the lovely Audrey Hepburn went each morning with a pastry and cup of coffee to have breakfast as she window shopped. You might add Breakfast at Tiffany’s to your movie viewing list if you’ve missed it. The song Moon River will have new meaning for you!

Josie de Guzman at The Green Room 42. Photo by Edward Kliszus

Josie de Guzman at The Green Room 42

Two-time Tony Award nominee Josie de Guzman performed her show “Back Where I Started” and enthralled listeners at The Green Room 42.The enchanting and vivacious de Guzman performed a musical biopic of her remarkable stage career. She spoke of the many fellow luminaries with whom she performed and collaborated. The amazing list includes Leonard Bernstein, Nathan Lane, Arthur Laurents, Jerome Robbins, Alan Jay Lerner, and Burton Lane, to name a few.

0
Would love your thoughts, please comment.x
()
x