A few years ago, Chip Davis subbed a bunch of students into the lineup of his hugely popular New Age jazz ensemble, Mannheim Steamroller, for a show in Branson, Mo.
The audience didn't blink.
It struck Davis, the founder and composer of the band's hard-to-define music, that his group was not about him; it was about the music.
"I made up my mind a long time ago to make the music the star of the show, not me," he said Tuesday in a phone interview from his 150-acre Omaha, Neb., farm. "The thing still drives itself without Dad driving the steamroller."
The Branson experiment also opened the door to launching a second branch of Mannheim Steamroller, best known for its Christmas music and annual holiday tour.
This year - the 25th annual - the twin ensembles will hit 58 cities all told, including Tucson. Davis' original group will be on tap to play two shows at Centennial Hall Sunday.
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The group takes classic Christmas carols and "steamrolls" them with their signature electro-tinged rock and renaissance sound.
Davis, who hasn't played in the concerts in two years, won't be in his shows here. He will be in Orlando, Fla., to open the second season of his Universal Studios holiday show, "Grinchmas," a retelling of "How the Grinch Stole Christmas."
Mannheim Steamroller, presented by UApresents, will perform at 2 p.m. (sold out) and 6 p.m. Sunday at the University of Arizona's Centennial Hall. Tickets are $34 to $79, with discounts available, at www.uapresents.org.
The Southern Arizona Women's Chorus will open its 25th-anniversary season with a unique collaboration.
The 60-voice chorus will join the dozen-harp-strong University of Arizona HarpFusion for Benjamin Britten's "Ceremony of Carols" - possibly the first Tucson performance of the piece in 25 years, according to the chorus.
Britten wrote "Ceremony of Carols" aboard a freighter bound for his home in England in 1942. The route took him up the North American coast to avoid U-boats during the war. The text is inspired in part by "The English Galaxy of Shorter Poems," which Britten found in a Halifax, Nova Scotia, bookstore early into the voyage.
The concert also will include rarely if ever heard Latin American, traditional and original holiday pieces. Performances will be at 7:30 p.m. next Friday at the UA's Eller Dance Theatre and 7:30 p.m. Dec. 12 at Ascension Lutheran Church, 1220 W. Magee Road. Tickets for next Friday cost $15, $10 for students, through the UA Fine Arts Box Office, 621-1162, or online at www.arizona.tix.com. Tickets for Saturday's performance are $15 through the Women's Chorus, 404-3148. Tickets also will be available at the venues both nights.
Redondo Music Theatre is looking to get you into a "that time of year" frame of mind with "Holiday Melodies - A Concert."
Singers - and Redondo has some mighty good ones on board - will perform seasonal favorites with origins in Hollywood, Broadway and elsewhere.
Among those who will be singing out are Mary Paul, Robin White, Olivia Velasco and Elinor Sherman.
The musical revue is at 7:30 p.m. Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday at the Leo Rich Theatre at the Tucson Convention Center, 260 S. Church Ave. Tickets are $24, with discounts available. Get them at the TCC Box Office and any Ticketmaster outlet.
• Christmas at San Xavier - Mission San Xavier del Bac, 1950 W. San Xavier Road. Featuring the Sons of Orpheus and the Tucson Arizona Boys Chorus. 6 and 8 p.m. Dec. 8-10; all 6 p.m. performances are sold out. $90. 407-6130.
• Tucson Chamber Artists "Traditional Lessons & Carols by Candlelight" - 8 p.m. today and 2 p.m. Sunday at St. Philip's in the Hills Episcopal Church, 4440 N. Campbell Ave. Professional choir performs sacred Christmas songs and contemporary Christmas carols by candlelight. $15 to $25; $10 for college students; and free for children through 12th grade at www.tucsonchamberartists.org. 401-2651.
• SaddleBrooke Singers Holiday Concert - 7:30 p.m. today, 4 p.m. Saturday at DesertView Performing Arts Center, SaddleBrooke. $15 in advance; $17 door. 825-2818.
• Pima Community College Orchestra Holiday Concert - 3 p.m. Saturday at PCC's Proscenium Theatre on the West campus. Alexander Tentser directs a program with works by Torelli, Bach and Mozart. $6.
• Reveille's "Our Holiday Memories" - 8 p.m. Saturday, 3 p.m. Sunday at Grace St. Paul's Episcopal Church, 2331 E. Adams St. The men's chorus strolls down memory lane, complete with photo albums and classic Reveille-esque holiday songs. $15 in advance, $10 for students with I.D. at www.reveillemenschorus. org, at Antigone Books, or by calling Reveille at 304-1758; $20 at the door.
• HarpFusion holiday - 6-7:45 p.m. Saturday at Casas Adobes Congregational Church UCC, 6801 N. Oracle Road. The University of Arizona's HarpFusion presents a concert with international and traditional Christmas pieces. $8 suggested donation. 297-1181.
• 10th annual "Holiday Card to Tucson" - 3 and 7:30 p.m. Sunday at St. Augustine Cathedral, 192 S. Stone Ave. Presented by the University of Arizona choral department, the event features a combined chorus of 250 voices from the UA Community Chorus, Arizona Choir, UA Symphonic Choir and the Tucson Arizona Boys Chorus. Free. Details: 621-2998.
• "Messiah" Sing-In - 7 p.m. Monday at Grace to the Nations, 6180 E. Pima St. Conducted by Jeffry Jahn. "Messiah" scores may be purchased or rented for $10 (rentals receive $5 back at end of concert). Free; donations accepted. 744-0869.
• Tucson Symphony Orchestra and Chorus present Handel's "Messiah" - 8 p.m. next Friday and Dec. 12; 2 p.m. Dec. 13 at Catalina Foothills High School, 4300 E. Sunrise Drive. Bruce Chamberlain conducts the TSO and the TSO Chorus in the MasterWorks Chamber Orchestra special. Soloists: Christina Major, Kristin Dauphinais, Percy Martinez and Marcus DeLoach. $30-$40, www.tucson symphony.org. 882-8585.
• Musica Sonora's "An Old World Christmas" - 7:30 p.m. next Friday and 3 p.m. Dec. 13 at St. Andrew's Episcopal Church, 545 S. Fifth Ave. Southern Arizona's fully professional early-music vocal ensemble performs Christmas music from the 13th to the 17th centuries. $15; $12 for seniors and groups of 10 or more; $5 for students at the door. Details: 628-8119 or www. musicasonora.org.
• Arizona Repertory Singers present "Sing We Joy!" - 7:30 p.m. next Friday and 3 p.m. Dec. 13 at the Benedictine Monastery, 800 N. Country Club Road; 3 p.m. Dec. 20 at Fountain of Life Lutheran Church, 710 S. Kolb Road. The group performs a concert of sacred and secular seasonal works, including traditional English carols, carols from the Renaissance and international works. $12; $10 for students and seniors at the door. www.arsingers.org.
• Ten Tenors Holiday Concert - 7:30 p.m. Dec. 15-17; 8 p.m. Dec. 18; 2 and 8 p.m. Dec. 19; 1 and 6:30 p.m. Dec. 20 at Fox Tucson Theatre, 17 W. Congress St. Australian a cappella group performs holiday favorites and classics. $27-$114 through www.foxtucsontheatre.org.
• Tucson Symphony Orchestra Holiday Spectacular - 7:30 p.m. Dec. 18 and 19, 2 p.m. Dec. 20 at Tucson Music Hall. Michael Hall is back at the podium to lead the orchestra, TSO Chorus, Tucson Regional Ballet and guest vocalists in a concert that incudes excerpts from "The Nutcracker." Special guests: Mariachi Aztlan de Pueblo High School, directed by John Contreras. $24-$62 through www. tucsonsymphony.org. 882-8585.
