Music Review: Uintah Basin Orchestra and Chorus: 2015 Christmas Concert

Uintah Basin Orchestra and Chorus: 2015 Christmas Concert

This orchestra and choral concert just keeps getting bigger and bigger.  This year there are more singers, more orchestra members, children singers, more dancers.  It is just more.  I keep looking for Dennis Hatch whose name is on the program, and I did Star of Justice with Dennis Hatch.  I felt the highlight of this entire concert is in the 41st minute, the children's chorus sings the Wexford Carol.  

Music Review: Great Choral Classics

Great Choral Classics  Laser Light Digital

This is a mixture of religious and operatic music.  Operatic music is usually not my thing, but I do enjoy religious music.  Most of that in this case is in Latin.  I found Bach’s Mass in B Minor, Sanctus very enjoyable.  It had the basic theme firmly planting but also with entertaining runs.  Mozart’s Requiem Mass: Luz Eterna was also very well done.  I always have loved Handel’s Messiah, and this CD presents “For Unto Us a Child is Born.”  This is an all time favorite and a joy to listen to.  Joseph Hadyn’s “The Creation” also falls into this group.  This CD is topped off with Beethoven “Symphony NO. 9 4^th Movement (excerpt)” which is really very moving.  The choir chords are very lovely.  It is not as enjoyable when it gets into the soloist part.

Uintah Basin Orchestra and Choir: Christmas Concert

You may ask how I am reviewing a performance hundreds of miles away and a few weeks ago.  It is available on You Tube.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Utn9UjnHffI&list=HL1387609696&feature=mh_lolz
The sing several stirring John Rutter numbers, "The Candle Light Carol"which is very sweet, Handel's "Hallelujah Chorus" was very well done.  There was a Bell Choir, but is was rather thin with none of the big bells which are so nice in a bell choir.  There was also a long orchestral medley of Christmas song, both secular and religious.  I must admit, this is the part that likely would have put me to sleep.  It was a bit long, and my favorite is the vocals, and you put up with the orchestra to keep them happy.  I liked the vocal addition to "Jesu Joy of Man's Desiring."  A French tune "Carol to the King" was very well done, and the dancing was beautiful.  In another song the dancing was not as impressive, but this is beautiful.  "The First Noel" was to the arrangement the Mormon Tabernacle Choir has sung, and is beautiful in some of the changes to the hymnbook version.  It ends with a stirring vocal and orchestral Christmas medley written by someone from the Air Force Band.
This is a new Uintah Basin feature, and hopefully it has a long future.  The community should be proud.  It seemed the audience was a bit lukewarm, but they did end the night with a standing ovation.  I was looking for maybe someone I would recognize.  Dennis Hatch was in the program, and a Barlow and a Wardle, but 21 years is too long to recognize anyone.