Holiday program full of cheer

Another IU tradition played out Wednesday night as the Singing Hoosiers filled the IU Auditorium with the "Chimes of Christmas."\nBut the holiday pageantry was in abundance even before the massive audience consisting of mostly Bloomington locals and University employees filled the seats. As we walked into the lobby, a Christmas tree stood tall garnered with ribbon with a musical score print running from bottom to top around the whole tree. And already the idea of delighting people's ears was in place as the IU Trombone Choir under Director Carl Lenthe made the sounds of Christmas classic like "Angels We Have Heard on High" with their wonderful brass.\nAt various points throughout the program, the lights were dimmed onstage and then raised on the orchestra pit to draw the audience's attention to the Wind Ensemble under Conductor Stephen W. Pratt. The Wind Ensemble played a few sections of the program solo, including the holiday standard of "Sleigh Ride." The Wind Ensemble glided through "Sleigh Ride" but it wasn't as wonderful as I've heard by other groups. I think "Sleigh Ride" only comes across well if it has lots and lots of boisterous brass shouting out at the listeners. But "Comfort and Joy" and, of course, Handel's "Messiah" was truly worth its Hallelujahs.\nThe Singing Hoosiers are a group that incorporates clever vocal arrangements including rounds, with a mastery of harmonies and melodies that truly delight the eardrum. They also include some dance numbers that are not worthy of praise from the world of ballet, but are still entertaining and make sense with the music, so the movements serve their purpose. During many of the dance sequences, the dancers tried to convey the emotions of the songs as the vocalists seemed like caricatures of the song's emotions. \nNeither was too successful. For example, I saw a dancer trying to express anger -- a theme the number did not address.\nI thought bringing a Santa Claus out as part of the act to greet the people in the back of the house and on the balcony with a "Hello to all you people back in the cheap seats," was a great touch. It made me laugh. I've never seen it done like that before. Someone dressed up like Rudolph was also on stage for part of "Run, Run Rudolph" when the dancing and prancing by both Santa's senior reindeer and the Singing Hoosiers abounded.\nIn the end, my superior vocal ability was allowed to contaminate the airspace around me as I joined in with the audience singing the carols of the season, including "Joy to the World," "Oh Come All Ye Faithful" and "Silent Night."\nDoug Booher is the IU Auditori-um Director, and he should feel quite proud of the quality of the programs he has continually presented.