Deck the Halls with Chips and Salsa

I'm enjoying some quiet time while listening to some Christmas music. My children and I attended a Christmas concert at my high school alma mater last night. It included singing and instrumental. It's been a while since I've attended anything there, but, I'm always amazed at the level of talent high school kids possess. And it's always a delight to hear something you've never heard before. One song was the title of this blog. I LOVE the music to this Christmas standard. I'm trying to locate a decent MP3 version of it. Another cutesie song was Good King Kong Looked Out. Here is a link to the lyrics -
http://www.santasearch.org/music.asp?PID=1&SongID=1077
- The ultimate touch was when the whole choir pulled out kazoos and hummed in harmony! It was so fun. Here is a link to the Virginia Beach Chorale video performance of this song.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lrbHOtAthqA&feature=related
I would say the high school group was as good, if not a touch better!

The auditorium was nicely filled, but not cramped. I had both kids with me, Jacob on my lap, when I heard a girl behind me say to her kids, 'There's Mr. McC. He was the choir director when I was here.' I tried to inconspicuously see where Mr. McC was because he was my choir director, also. Lo and behold, he was sitting in our row three seats away from us. Leaving Jacob behind I slid into the seat beside the former music director, tapped him and asked if he by any chance recognized me. Allaying any embarrassment at NOT making an ID I told him my last name. He remembered and even recalled my involvement in all the music programs- vocal and instrumental. Music was everything to me when I was in high school. I had a moment of dread that I didn't have any continuing musical achievements to share. But as the evening's program started and I returned to me seat I thought about the influence he and our band directors, Mr. E. and Mr. B. played in my life in my other musical endeavors.

My musical endeavors started during my early years of teaching in an Erie parochial school. I instituted my own brand of music into religion classes. Hoping to sauce up the routine of practicing songs for Mass I used a song from a District Chorus concert in which I'd been a part. It was an inspirational round. We did not have a music teacher at my first school so everyone was willing to participate. Grades 5-8 sang it for a meditation song.
As time went on I tried to incorporate 70s protest(?) songs into classes, pathetically strumming my guitar while the kids sang, Get Together, One Tin Soldier and You've Got a Friend, etc. I wrote and my classes performed several prayer services. The last one showing the principal's trust in me when I put modern music and dialog into the story of the passion of Christ. I only organized one performance after that and it was back to a more austere atmosphere as a student played the piano while the rest of the fifth graders sang Only a Baby Came. Where on earth did I get any knowledge or arrogance to think I could pull these things off? Mr. McC, who always showed me more confidence than I actually ever felt in myself.

Mr. E was the one who cemented my enjoyment of big band music. In my current favorite oldie, Little River Band's song Reminiscing, they mention "Cole Porter tunes...Night and Day..." I love Night and Day. I have a cassette Christmas In the Mood. Thank you Glenn Miller. I played the piano in our high school's Stage Band. I remember practicing the Tonight Show Theme on the piano over and over and still never feeling completely confident that I was playing it well. As a result I tried to play quietly. I still remembering Mr. E encouraging me to play louder! Playing the saxophone and piano in a group are two of my favorite memories of my school years.

Teachers don't always get the recognition they deserve. But it sometimes takes years for their students to perceive the influence of those steadfast figures . That includes parents, teachers, neighbors, bosses and unwavering friends.

The concert ended with the invitation of former choir members to come onstage/up front to sing the Hallelujah Chorus. I did not go up- two kids couldn't be left behind. I wasn't sure if I SANG it in high school. It seems to me I accompanied the choir on the piano. I did know the soprano part and sang it from my seat. The girl behind me was singing the alto part. She did pretty well, too! They asked everyone to stand up for this performance. I think this was the only thing that marred the show: it was next to impossible to see anything but the backs of the people in front of me! It would have been much better if everyone had remained seated.

Obviously it wasn't such a problem because I hadn't even considered it until I started writing this blog. Deck the Halls with Chips and Salsa. That's memorable. And sounds like time for a snack.

Hormonally yours,
Peg