It's Beginning to Sound a Lot Like Christmas

The Malta High School band and choir concert was held this past week to a packed house on Tuesday, December 14.

The high school full choir kicked things off under the direction of Mrs. Nancy Murdock, with an acapella song called O Magnum Mysterium by Evan Ramos.

The next song was called In The Bleak Midwinter by Rossetti/Holst. The song started with a tenor sax solo played by Isaac Helms.

Both of the first two songs were more of the hymnal type of music and were performed beautifully by the full choir.

The full choir performed two more songs together, both of which were newer songs, made famous by singers of the current era.

The first is a song made famous by the group Pentatonix called That's Christmas To Me. It featured solos performed by Aubri Werk, Jade Darrington, Skylie Lefdahl, and Deion Lefdahl. And the second song called All I want for Christmas is You, made famous by Mariah Carey, and featuring a duet by sisters Emma and Anna Harms.

The Men's Ensemble took the stage next to sing Unto You This Night. A song made famous by Garth Brooks. It featured Draven Lageson, Elijah Hawes, Kyle Darrington, and Mason Simanton.

The next song was done by the Euterpes. Santa Baby is a song that has been covered by many famous singers over the years. Most recently by the likes of Ariana Grande and Gwen Stefani. But for those of a little older generation might remember it being done by the great Eartha Kitt. It was performed equally great by the Euterpes and featured a wonderful solo by senior Emma Harms. Marking her last solo to be performed on the Malta stage as she is graduating at the end of the first semester.

A fun rendition of Let It Snow was the finale performed by the Malta Swing Choir. A little song and dance routine to put a smile on your face and end the choir portion of the night.

The Malta High School Concert Band took the stage next under the direction of Mr. Erik Engebretson.

The band started off with the perfect opener for the concert called Celebration. A song that inspires the simple ideas of joy, exhilaration, and goodwill.

They followed that up with And The Herald Angels Sang. A song that combines three carols with angels as their theme, Angels From the Realms of Glory, Angels We Have Heard on High, and Hark! The Herald Angels Sing.

The next song called Christmas Can-Can was a light-hearted romp containing a few famous melodies like Jingle Bells.

The band played their version of In The Bleak Midwinter. Mr. E said, "It's a totally different interpretation from the version that the choir did earlier." The song featured solos by Madyson Bain, Isaac Helms, Bow SaintLouis, Justine Lamb, Kelbie Nelson, and Addison Ulrich.

With Every Winter's Breath was the next song. It's a song that was written as a moving tribute to a trumpet player in the Bayfield, CO High School band that passed away doing what she loved in a skiing accident her freshman year. The song featured a solo by Bryan Bertos on trumpet, as well as solos by Madyson Bain and Tia Siewing.

The grand finale for the Malta Concert Band was Christmas Eve/Sarajevo 12/24. A song made famous by a band Mr. E says he would love to see in person, The Trans-Siberian Orchestra. It was a tremendous ending to a great night of music put on by the Malta High School musicians.

The Middle School and Elementary Christmas concerts will be covered in next week's edition of the Phillips County News.