Directed by Glen Newton
Choral Prelude: Joy to the World (one verse sung in the key of D)
Angels We Have Heard on High arr. by Ralph Carmichael (1961), as recorded by the Stan Kenton Orchestra
(start at bar 3 when the vocal quartet says "sing" at the end of "And heaven, and heaven and nature sing.")
Here Comes Santa Claus by Gene Autry and Oakley Haldeman (1947), arr. by John Berry; Autry got the idea for the song after riding his horse in the 1946 Santa Claus Lane Parade (now the Hollywood Christmas Parade) in Los Angeles during which crowds of spectators chanted, "Here comes Santa Claus". This inspired him to write a song that Haldeman set to music; it was #19 on ASCAP's 2021 list of most-played holiday songs.
(featuring the Rosetones, with a trumpet solo by Steve Hogenson (both times at 50 w. 2-bar break at 48))
Sleigh Ride by Leroy Anderson (1948), arr. by John LaBarbera, as played by the Glenn Miller orchestra; according to Leroy Anderson's biographer, Steve Metcalf, Sleigh ride "has been performed and recorded by a wider array of musical artists than any other piece in the history of Western music"; it was #1 on ASCAP's 2021 list of most-played holiday songs.*
(featuring solos by Glen Peterson, tenor sax, and Steve Hogenson, trumpet)
Introduction of the trumpet section to the audience
The Lady is a Tramp by Lorenz Hart and Richard Rodgers (1937), arr. by Dave Wolpe; from the musical "Babes in Arms", the classic "Hey, kids, let's put on a show" musical, this song is a spoof on New York high society and its strict etiquette. After their parents leave for the vaudeville circuit, kids stage a revue, which bombs, but then a French aviator lands nearby and they get enough publicity to put on a great show and start their own youth center. This show also gave us "Funny Valentine", "Where or When", and "Johnny One Note".
(featuring The Rosetones, with a scat vocal by Keith Miner)
Introduction of the Rosetones to the audience
Still Love You by Keith Miner (2000), arr. by Glen Newton; Keith composed this song to honor his parents on their wedding anniversary.
(featuring composer-vocalist Keith Miner, with solos by John Seal, guitar (at E); and George Henly, trombone (5 after E))
We Three Kings by John Henry Hopkins (1857), arr. by Ralph Carmichael (1961); as recorded by the Stan Kenton Orchestra; Hopkins served as the rector of Christ Episcopal Church in Williamsport, Pennsylvania, and wrote the carol for a Christmas pageant in New York City.
(featuring pianist Mike Holt)
Introduction of the trombone section to the audience.
In the Time of Nick by Len Yaeger (2012), in memory of Roseville Big Band Trombonist Mike Bratlie. It's based on “Santa Claus Is Comin’ to Town” by Fred Coots and Haven Gillespie (1934), ASCAP's #5 song on its list of most played holiday songs in 2021.
(featuring solos by Keith Miner (at 1 before E), Michael Sweet (at F), and George Henly (at G), trombones, and Tom Huelsmann, (at H) bass trombone, with the Rosetones)
Let It Snow, Let It Snow, Let It Snow by Jule Styne and Sammy Cahn (1945), arr. by John Berry; according to popular legend, it was written in Hollywood, California during one of the hottest days on record; it was #2 on ASCAP's 2021 list of most-played holiday songs.
(featuring solos by Dan Desmonds, baritone sax, Glen Peterson, tenor sax, Eric Laska, electric bass, and Tom Huelsmann, bass trombone)
Introduction of the rhythm section to the audience
(Everybody's Waitin' for) The Man with the Bag by Harold Stanley, Irving Taylor, and Dudley Brooks (1950), arr. by Rick Stitzel; this arrangement closely follows Kay Starr's recording that regularly appeared on Billboard's list of most popular Christmas songs in the 1950's.
(featuring vocalist Karen Dunn)
Walkin' in a Winter Wonderland by Dick Smith and Felix Bernard (1934), arr. by Dave Barduhn; lyricist Dick Smith, a native of Honesdale, Pennsylvania, was reportedly inspired to write the song after seeing Honesdale's Central Park covered in snow. The original 1934
(featuring solos by Tom Huelsmann, bass trombone, and Bill Frank, flute)
Introduction of the saxophone section to the audience
Christmas is Just 'Round the Corner by Glen Newton (2012); Newton wrote this song to celebrate the reunion of families separated by overseas military deployments.
(featuring vocalist Karen Dunn with a vibraphone solo by Glen Newton)
Love is Here to Stay by George and Ira Gershwin (1938), arr. by Dave Wolpe, vocal arr. by Glen Newton; first performed by Kenny Baker in "The Goldwyn Follies" in 1938, a satire on Hollywood about a producer who hires a "simple girl" to be Miss Humanity and evaluate his films from the ordinary person's point of view. It became popular when sung by Gene Kelly to Leslie Caron in the film "American in Paris" in 1951, but some of our audience members will have first heard the song in the movie "When Harry Met Sally" (1989), sung by Louis Armstrong and Ella Fitzgerald.
(high key male version; featuring Bruce Stasch and the Rosetones, with a trumpet solo by Dan Theobald)
The Most Wonderful Time of the Year by Eddie Pola and George Wyle (1963), arr. by Paul Murtha; George Wyle wrote it for the second Andy Williams Christmas Show on television, and Andy sang it every year; it gradually gained popularity with other performers, and in 2017, the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers ranked Williams' recording as 7th most played holiday song of the year.
(featuring vocalists Karen Dunn and Glen Newton)
I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day by Johnny Marks and Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1956), arr. by Gordon Goodwin; Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's 1863 poem "Christmas Bells" was first set to music in 1872, with a different tune than the familiar melody Johnny Marks wrote in 1956, which is the basis for Gordon Goodwin's arrangement that we now play.
(featuring solos by George Henly, trombone (62-72), Mark Syman, trumpet (73-88), and Dan Carlson (89-96))
The Christmas Song by Mel Torme and Robert Wells (1946), arr. by Paul Jennings; according to Tormé, "I saw a spiral pad on his piano with four lines written in pencil", Tormé recalled. "They started, "Chestnuts roasting..., Jack Frost nipping..., Yuletide carols..., Folks dressed up like Eskimos.' Bob (Wells, co-writer) didn't think he was writing a song lyric. He said he thought if he could immerse himself in winter he could cool off. Forty minutes later that song was written. I wrote all the music and some of the lyrics."; #15 on ASCAP's 2021 list of most-played holiday songs.
(featuring the Rosetones)
We Wish You a Merry Christmas arr. by Glen Newton (2022)
(featuring the Rosetones)
Roseville Big Band performers for this concert (left to right):
Saxes (left to right): Glen Peterson (tenor), Bill Frank (alto and flute), Kay Foster (alto and soprano), Dan Carlson (tenor), and Dan Desmonds (baritone)
Trumpets and Flugelhorns (left to right): Dan Theobald, Mark Syman, Steve Hogenson, and Bob Nielsen
Trombones (left to right): George Henly, Keith Miner, Michael Sweet, and Tom Huelsmann; Glen Newton played trombone while Keith sang "Still Love You"
Rhythm (front to back): Glen Newton (vibraphone), John Seal (guitar), Mike Holt (piano), Eric Laska (electric bass), and Jim Foster (drums)
Vocalists: The Rosetones (Karen Dunn, Diane Dolinar, Bruch Stasch, and Glen Newton), and Keith Miner
* #3 on the 2021 ASCAP list was "A Holly Jolly Christmas" by Johnny Marks (1962)
#4 on the list was "It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas" by Meredith Wilson (1951)
It was early on a Sunday morning, and the band outnumbered the audience, which numbered about 15, including some relatives of band members.