Playing the kettle

MichaelDenney · Post by **MichaelDenney** » Sun Sep 10, 2006 7:17 pm

I remembered a discussion this time last year about carol books for disparate instrumentation and stopped by Pender's Music yesterday to look for one of the recommended sets, Carolers Favorites. I bought the book for tubas and played through several tunes--they look like fun arrangements, and a fair number of notes with flags to keep one's interest at the big end of the group. I am going to buy a set in hopes of getting friends together this Christmas (trumpet, oboe, trombone, clarinet [no, no, not a friend, just an acquaintance, really!], euph, tuba, percussion) and playing the kettles to help out our friends at the Salvation Army.

Carolers Favorites was the one I tried but other collections were recommended as well:

viewtopic.php?t=9732&postdays=0&postord ... ks&start=0

Allen · Post by **Allen** » Sun Sep 10, 2006 10:31 pm

I was thinking the same thing! Two days ago, I ordered a set of Carolers' Favorites from J.W. Pepper.

If any TubeNetter in the Boston MA area wants to do some Christmas kettle playing, please send me a PM. (I live in Burlington MA, if you want a better idea of my location).

Cheers,
Allen

sinfonian · Post by **sinfonian** » Mon Sep 11, 2006 9:25 am

I have played the Caroler's books with a group in the Elgin (IL) area the last 3 Christmas. We usually have between 4 - 8 Brass (no WW allowed) musicians that stand in frount of various stores for 2 hours on a Saturday between Thanksgiving and Christmas. I have been told that the value of the kettle increases multiple times when there are live musicians. The only issue last year was that the final Saturday was the same days TubaChristmas in Chicago and I had to choose.

MichaelDenney · Post by **MichaelDenney** » Tue Sep 12, 2006 8:12 pm

According to the Carolers (why isn't the possessive apostrophe there?) Favorites book cover the fifth part is a color part for quintets and sextets. Has anyone played it? Does it add anything to the arrangements?

iiipopes · Post by **iiipopes** » Tue Nov 20, 2007 9:50 pm

I resurrected this thread because it's that time again. I challenge all who are physically able (for God's sake -- if you aren't physically able please stay indoors and let the others take their turn -- you can do something like fix the beverages of choice for the rest of us when we're finished!) go volunteer and play Christmas tunes for an hour, or maybe another hour on another day as well, to relieve a bell ringer, for a most worthy cause.

True story: last year I was playing along and a distinguished business lady whizzed past into the store. A few minutes later she whizzed back out, abruptly stopped, turned around, looked straight at me, and, absolute quote, edit if you must: "This sure beats the hell out of those damn bells -- here!" And started just shoving handfuls of bills into the kettle. I barely caught myself from falling off my seat, smiled, said thank you, took a minute to compose myself after she left, and carried on.

Oh, yeah -- I'm already scheduled for Friday after Thanksgiving at 1:00 pm at one of the largest Wal-Mart SuperCenters in the area. And I may do an hour on Saturday, as well.

Happy Holidays!

Chuck Jackson · Post by **Chuck Jackson** » Tue Nov 20, 2007 11:11 pm

As a side note. The Salvation Army turns around about 99% of the money the get to those who are much needier than you or I. Not only is playing for them a great thing to do, but morally they are the best people in the world to those less fortunate. If I could still play, I would be doing as much as I could possibly sthad for them, in the mean time I give generously.

Chuck"is this political?"Jackson

tofu · Post by **tofu** » Wed Nov 21, 2007 1:58 am

Do those of you who do this just show up and play or do you pre-arrange this with some one at the Salvation Army?

ken k · Post by **ken k** » Wed Nov 21, 2007 1:00 pm

MichaelDenney wrote:According to the Carolers (why isn't the possessive apostrophe there?) Favorites book cover the fifth part is a color part for quintets and sextets. Has anyone played it? Does it add anything to the arrangements?

Yes the 5th part is a nice counter melody on many carols and works well played by the trombone in the quintet (or perhaps a euph in a sextet). When we play them we have the horn play the third part and the tuba on the 4th part and the bone on the 5th part. Some of the lines are very "Euphonium-istic." We also tried having the trumpet play the Bb book 5 (and the horn on part 2 and bone on part 3) but we liked the trombone playing it better.

ken k

iiipopes · Post by **iiipopes** » Wed Nov 21, 2007 2:34 pm

tofu wrote:Do those of you who do this just show up and play or do you pre-arrange this with some one at the Salvation Army?

Call and schedule. I started scheduling about a month ago. But it's never too late, and they are always most grateful.

Jack Denniston · Post by **Jack Denniston** » Wed Nov 21, 2007 9:15 pm

Here in Durham, NC we play at the kettle in front of Walmart on Tuesday and Thursday evenings and from 11 AM til 2 or 3 PM on Saturdays between Thanksgiving and Christmas. On Christmas eve we play from 11 AM to around 4 PM.

The Caroler's Favorite books work well. I heard they have a new book out with some longer, arrangements.

We've had anywhere between 1 and 15 players, usually 4-8, on mixed brass instruments. "We" is whoever shows up on any given day. We're led by a Salvation Army officer, working in a volunteer capacity.

The 5th part is usually played by a single euph player, but only if there are at least 5 players present.

We have a great time, make some pretty good music, and support a very worthy cause- what a great holiday tradition!

iiipopes · Post by **iiipopes** » Thu Nov 22, 2007 10:38 am

Hey Jack -- that's great! Happy Holidays!

OldBandsman · Post by **OldBandsman** » Thu Nov 22, 2007 10:38 am

Hi... Count me in again this year.

A group of us from band played at a small mall over in Newburyport MA last year. We just signed up for the first two Friday evenings in December this year. Our lead cornet player grew up in a Salvation Army family and had all the right connections. Brass just sounds so fantastic on a cold winter night I can't resist the opportunity. And the contribution is much appreciated.

John Roberts
Merrimack Valley Concert Band

iiipopes · Post by **iiipopes** » Sun Nov 25, 2007 9:17 pm

Friday went great. Sunny and @ 40 degrees. Filled the kettle. The pastor who is the local contact for our small town chapter overseeing the kettles took his turn for an hour right after me. He said that for the next fifteen minutes after I left everyone who came out of the store asked where the tuba player went -- they enjoyed it so much! Estimate: $600 raised in that hour.

TubeNet

Playing the kettle

Playing the kettle

Red Kettle playing in NC

Count me in!