A Christmas Celebration 10-12 December Festival Theatre A Christmas Celebration Welcome Luke Dollman Conductor It would be a joy to present this concert for you at the Mitchell Butel MC/Vocals/Creative Director end of any year, but right now that joy is tinged with Johanna Allen Vocals an awareness of what a challenging journey 2020 has The Idea of North Vocal quartet been. This is a season to be especially grateful that Freddy Ramly-Peck The Little Drummer Boy we are together again, in the company of the ASO, Mietta Brookman The Sugar Plum Fairy conductor Luke Dollman and the wonderful artists who will bring you magical Christmas entertainment. Duration Approx. 1 hr 20 mins, no interval 2020 has been a test of resilience, and a test of inventiveness too. Although the possibility of live performance evaporated in March, the ASO quickly GRUBER recognised the opportunities the online space Silent Night presented, and since then the musicians have kept the music-making alive through a series of virtual HURST concerts. Your response to these performances has A Welcome to Christmas been tremendously encouraging and you will see on the ASO website that new online performances GILLESPIE/COOTS (arr. YOUNG) continue to be available to you. Santa Claus is Coming to Town Adelaide Festival Centre took the first careful steps CAPPEAU/ADAM towards bringing live music back after the shutdowns, O Holy Night with a series of concerts at the redeveloped Her Majesty’s Theatre, and has continued to pioneer the HAIRSTON ( arr. TWIST) safe return of artists and audiences to venues. Mary's Boy Child The ASO’s return to the Festival Theatre stage in TCHAIKOVSKY September was a moving and exciting occasion From The Nutcracker: The Waltz of the Flowers, and reminded us that the moments when we come The Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy together as audiences and performers are among the most life-giving of all. After a year like no other in FOX (arr. EDMONDS) living memory, it is wonderful to announce that the Zat You Santa Claus? ASO will be back on the Festival Theatre stage to share an amazing season of music with you in 2021. You TAYLOR/BROOKS/STANLEY can pick up a brochure in the Adelaide Festival Centre The Man with the Bag foyers, or find out more on the ASO website, aso.com. au. We can’t wait to re-connect with you, by bringing ANDERSON you the universal message of music’s power, beauty Sleigh Ride and relevance, with inspiring performances. TRADITIONAL (arr. CRELLIN) Christmas concerts are a beloved tradition at I Saw Three Ships Adelaide Festival Centre, and we hope you are delighted and inspired by this celebration of the MITCHELL (orch. TWIST) season. Our warmest good wishes to you for a safe River and happy festive season. WADE (arr. WILLCOCKS) O come, all ye faithful RODGERS (arr. CASEY) From The Sound of Music: Climb Ev'ry Mountain Vincent Ciccarello Douglas Gautier Managing Director CEO and Artistic Director YELLEN, AGER, ARLEN (arr. EDMONDS) Adelaide Symphony Orchestra Adelaide Festival Centre Happy Days/Get Happy TRADITIONAL (arr. O’BOYLE) Carol of the Drum (The Little Drummer Boy) MARTIN/BLANE (orch. TWIST) Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas In the spirit of reconciliation, we acknowledge that the land we make music on is the traditional country of the MASON (arr. HURST) Kaurna people of the Adelaide Plains. We recognise and Joy to the World respect their cultural heritage, beliefs and relationship with the land. We pay our respect to Elders past and TRADITIONAL (arr. SEXTON) We Wish You A Merry Christmas present and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples today. Welcome Christmas Hits and Myths We can debate the question of whether music is truly a Munich housewife who was sick of being asked by her a universal language, but at this time of year, even in children when Christmas would come. Commercial advent these socially-distanced times, we know that the music calendars were first produced in Germany in 1851. of Christmas is being played all over the world. In its Santa Claus was invented by Coca-Cola tenderness and timelessness, its reverence and sense of The origins of the Santa Claus figure are as ancient as wonder, it is as essential to seasonal celebrations as tree- St. Nicholas, whose legendary generosity is celebrated in trimming and mistletoe, and we hope this concert, coming parts of Europe on 6 December, with an exchange of gifts. at the end of one of the most challenging years many of us can remember, brings particular joy to your world. Some of the signposts leading from this figure to Santa Claus are the appropriation of the name from the Dutch For such a significant celebration, it’s amazing how many Sinterklaas, the Dutch character based on St. Nicholas. myths about Christmas persist from year to year, while its Then there’s the American poem ’Twas the night before status as a sacred and secular festival can still be a bit of a Christmas by American Clement Clarke Moore, first puzzle. Let’s look at three well-accepted Christmas legends published in 1823. This was this poem which gave the world and see how they stack up. the notion that St. Nicholas was associated with a sleigh The early Christians celebrated Jesus’ birth on 25 December and reindeer. During Christianity’s first centuries authorities strongly Where Coca-Cola comes into the picture (literally) is in the opposed the celebration of martyrs’ or saints’ birthdays. Santa Claus iconography. Artist Haddon Sundblom first The date of December 25 as the date of Jesus’ birth is not illustrated him for the Coca-Cola Company’s Christmas mentioned until the year 221. advertising in the 1930s. The popularity of Sundblom’s Christmas trees are part of the festival’s sacred tradition imagery was one reason Santa Claus ended up wearing The Renaissance humanist Sebastian Brant first recorded red and white, as opposed to the many other colours of the custom of placing fir trees in houses at Christmas time clothing he’d worn beforehand. in 1494. The Advent wreath is a more recent phenomenon, dating from the 16th century. Even less venerable is the Annotation ©2020 Phillip Sametz advent calendar. It was invented in the 19th century by Adelaide Symphony Orchestra Violins Cellos Bassoons Percussion Cameron Hill** Simon Cobcroft** Mark Gaydon** Steve Peterka** (Acting Concertmaster) David Sharp~ (Acting Leah Stephenson Sami Butler Shirin Lim** (Acting Associate Principal) Associate Concertmaster) Sarah Denbigh Horns Rhythm Section Minas Berberyan* Christopher Handley (Acting Principal 1st Violin) Adrian Uren** Jazz Bass: Harley Gray* Sherrilyn Handley Lachlan Bramble** Emma Gregan Drums: John McDermott◇ (Acting Principal 2nd Violin) Cameron Waters Philip Paine* Tenor Saxophone: Julia Brittain~ Thalia Huston Damien Hurn◇ (Acting Associate Double Basses Guitar: James Muller◇ Principal 2nd Violin) David Schilling** Trumpets Piano: David McEvoy◇ Ann Axelby Jonathon Coco~ David Khafagi◇ Gillian Braithwaite Louis Cann Martin Phillipson~ Harp Hilary Bruer Gregory Frick Suzanne Handel* Douglas Gautier Elizabeth Collins Flutes CEO and Artistic Director Judith Coombe Julia Grenfell** Trombones Celeste (Acting Principal) Adelaide Festival Centre Alexis Milton Colin Prichard** Katrina Reynolds◇ Emma Perkins Ian Denbigh Kemeri Spurr Piccolo Organ Samantha Hennessy◇ Bass Trombone David Heah◇ Violas Howard Parkinson* Justin Julian** Oboes (Acting Principal) Joshua Oates** Tuba Linda Garrett~ Renae Stavely~ (Guest Associate) Emily Legg◇ ** denotes Section Principal Martin Butler Clarinets Timpani ~ denotes Associate Principal Anna Hansen Mitchell Berick** Andrew Penrose* * denotes Principal Player Rosi McGowran Darren Skelton ◇ denotes Guest Principal Cecily Satchell Luke Dollman Mitchell Butel Conductor MC/Vocals/ Creative Director Luke Dollman has conducted throughout Europe Mitchell Butel is the Artistic Director of State Theatre and Australasia, working with orchestras such Company South Australia. He has four Helpmann as the London Philharmonic, Netherlands Radio Awards, four Sydney Theatre Awards, three Sydney Philharmonic, Royal Scottish National Orchestra, Glug Awards and two Victorian Green Room Awards BBC National Orchestra of Wales, Helsinki for his work as a performer and a director over the Philharmonic, Monte Carlo Philharmonic, Lausanne last three decades. Sinfonietta, and all professional orchestras in Performing highlights include Unidentified Human Australia and New Zealand. Remains… (STCSA), Mr Burns: A Post-Electric Play (STCSA/Belvoir), Pinocchio, Rumpelstiltskin (Windmill/ In the field of opera, he has been a regular guest STCSA); The Venetian Twins (Queensland Theatre); at the Finnish National Opera, and has worked for The Merchant of Venice, Othello (Bell Shakespeare); Opera Australia, State Opera of South Australia, Arms and the Man, Romeo and Juliet, Tartuffe, Six and the Netherlands Opera. Luke is a graduate Degrees of Separation (Sydney Theatre Company); of the Sibelius Academy in Helsinki and furthered Disgraced, Urinetown, Tomfoolery, Piaf (Melbourne his studies at the Aspen Festival of Music and Theatre Company), and A Gentleman’s Guide to Love Accademia Chigiana. and Murder. A recognised authority in the field of conductor Mitchell’s directing credits include the Sydney and training, Luke has taught in prestigious European Melbourne seasons of Violet (Blue Saint/Hayes academies and for the masterclasses of Symphony Theatre), Spring Awakening (ATYP), The Bernstein Services International. He is Senior Lecturer in Songbook and Funny Girl (Sydney Symphony Conducting and Deputy Director at the Elder Orchestra). Conservatorium of Music, University of Adelaide. For many years, Mitch was the voice of the Playschool theme song! Johanna Allen The Idea of North Vocals Vocal quartet Johanna Allen is building a career as one of The members of The Idea of North (TION) studied Australia’s most acclaimed artists, working within in some of Australia’s foremost music schools – the musical theatre, opera, film, television and Elder Conservatorium, the Victorian College of the cabaret, whilst also gaining credits as director, Arts, and the Canberra School of Music.