Tag Archives: tuba christmas

Merry Christmas from Vintage Band Festival!

On December 7 we kicked off the holiday season with Tuba Christmas in Northfield, the 5th year that Vintage Band Festival has presented Tuba Christmas on the campus of Carleton College. The event exceeded our expectations. We welcomed over 600 people in the audience and more than 60 tubists and euphonium musicians to the stage at Skinner Memorial Chapel.

Thanks to Carleton College for sponsoring our event. Thanks to Dr. Paul Niemisto for his conducting and his musical history lessons. And thanks to all those who donated and to our faithful volunteers. Merry Christmas to you and yours!

Meet Paul Niemisto, conductor of Tuba Christmas in Northfield

The conductor of Tuba Christmas in Northfield is Dr. Paul Niemisto. Paul is the founder and artistic director of Vintage Band Festival. He recently retired from the Music Department at St. Olaf College, where he taught and conducted for 38 years. He is a graduate of the University of Michigan and has a doctorate  from the University of Minnesota.

Niemisto is also the founder of the Ameriikan Poijat (Boys of America), a Finnish American brass ensemble. In addition, he is the founder and conductor of the Cannon Valley Regional Orchestra, a community symphony orchestra based in Northfield, Minnesota that has been delighting regional audiences for over 40 years.

Since 1980, Mr. Niemisto has been traveling regularly to Finland, where he has taught at the Lieksa International Brass week; Klemetti Institute Summer Youth Orchestra Course in Orivesi, Chief Conductor and Conducting Instructor at STM Summer Wind Orchestra Institute at Murikka opisto, and has given courses at many Finnish conservatories, including Kuopio, Tampere, Jyväskylä, and Joensuu. He was a Fulbright Senior Research Fellow in Finland in 1999 and 2017. In February 2000, he was awarded the Finnish Military Music Cross (soltlasmusiikkiristi) for his years of work and research in Finnish bands.

Tuba Christmas in Northfield 2025 will be presented by Vintage Band Festival at 3:00 pm on Saturday, December 7, in Skinner Chapel on the campus of Carleton College.

Tuba Christmas in Northfield 2024

Tuba Christmas in Northfield returns on Saturday, December 7, 2024. This fun event has been presented in many communities of the United States for over 50 years. Low brass instruments playing Christmas carols in harmony provides a listening experience that has no parallel.

The location for Tuba Christmas in Northfield is Skinner Memorial Chapel on the campus of Carleton College. The chapel is on 1st Street between Winona and College Streets on the east side of town. The rear doors (northside) of the building are accessible via ramped sidewalks. Parking is on city streets in the neighborhood.

Registration for musicians opens at 12:00 pm. There will be a rehearsal at 1:00 pm and a break from 2:00-3:00 pm. The performance begins at 3:00 pm. Registration is $10 for musicians and with that every musician will receive a commemorative pin.

“Carols for a Merry Tuba Christmas” books will be available for purchase for those who don’t own a copy already. There are books for both treble and bass clef readers. Large format books are $25 and small format books are $20. Tuba Christmas apparel will also be available in a variety of colors. Hats are $15, headbands are $10 and scarves are $20.

Cash, check or credit cards will be accepted. Checks should be made payable to Vintage Band Festival.

Tuba Christmas in Northfield is a free and family-friendly event. Be sure to tell your family to join the fun and spread the word to any friends who might wish to join us on stage. Musicians of any age are welcome!

Tuba Christmas 2023 was a success!

Tuba Christmas 2023 in Northfield was a roaring success. An audience of over 600 filled Carleton College’s Skinner Memorial Chapel  and listened with rapt attention to nearly 60 tubas and euphoniums playing a variety of Christmas carols. In between numbers, conductor Dr. Paul Niemisto presented information about the evolution of low brass instruments and cultural context for some of the carols.

2023 is the 50th Anniversary of the Tuba Christmas organization and the 24th annual Tuba Christmas in Northfield.

Many thanks to the Carleton’s Conference and Events staff for their assistance in set up and take down and to the college for once again being a supportive co-host for the event.

VBF on the radio: Tuba Christmas & the VBF Fund

As a result of two recent extraordinary donations, the Vintage Band Festival board of directors has launched the Vintage Band Festival Fund. This fund will part of the Northfield Area Fund, a community fund that is under the auspices of a local non-profit organization called Northfield Shares.

Our intent is for the Vintage Band Festival Fund ( VBF Fund) to be a place where donors may wish to give a legacy gift to help insure that Vintage Band Festival will be able to present live brass and wind band music many years into the future. Our organization will continue to fundraise annually to support the next scheduled festival, but we also need to fundraise with a longer timeline in mind.

We are humbled and extremely grateful to board member Jan Stevens for her generous gift of $25,000 that has enabled the VBF Fund to be created. We also wish to acknowledge the Wenger Foundation for their timely gift of $20,000 that will nearly double the size of the VBF Fund. Anyone wishing to donate to the VBF Fund can send a check payable to Northfield Shares (with “Vintage Band Festival Fund” on the memo line) and send it to Northfield Shares, 205 Water Street South, Northfield, MN 55057. There will be an online option soon for anyone wishing to use a credit card.

Jan and two other VBF board members were recently featured on the Art Zany: Radio for the Imagination show on the local station 95.1 The One KYMN Radio talking about the VBF Fund and the upcoming 2023 edition of Tuba Christmas in Northfield on Saturday, December 2. The VBF segment starts at about 35:30:00 in the recording.

Tuba Christmas 2023 in Northfield

Vintage Band Festival is presenting Tuba Christmas 2023 in Northfield, Minnesota on Saturday, December 2 at 3:00 pm. The event will take place in Skinner Memorial Chapel, 405 1st St. E. on the campus of Carleton College. Retired St. Olaf College professor Dr. Paul Niemisto will be the conductor of Tuba Christmas 2023.

Tuba Christmas is an annual event that brings together euphonium, baritone, sousaphone and tuba players of all ages to play Christmas carols for the enjoyment of family, friends and the general public. The music made by dozens of low brass instruments playing as a choir is an experience not to be missed, either as a participant or as a listener.

2023 is the 50th anniversary of Tuba Christmas concert events which are presented throughout the world. Tuba Christmas was conceived in 1974 by tubist Harvey Phillips of Indiana University as a tribute to his teacher and mentor William J. Bell, born on Christmas Day, 1902. The first Tuba Christmas was conducted by Paul Lavalle at New York City’s Rockefeller Plaza Ice Rink on Sunday, December 22, 1974.

There are now over 300 Tuba Christmas events produced annually throughout the United States and internationally. Registration for participants in Northfield’s Tuba Christmas will open at 12:00 pm on December 2. Registration fee is $10. There will be a rehearsal at 1:00 pm and the performance will be at 3:00 pm. Music played at Tuba Christmas will be from “Carols for a Merry Tuba Christmas” which will be available for purchase at registration. Musicians are invited to decorate their instruments if they so choose. Details for the event can be found at www.vintagebandfestival.org . This event is family-friendly, free and open to the public.

Tuba Christmas 2023 in Northfield is made possible with generous assistance from Carleton College.

Tuba Christmas was a resounding success!

Saturday, December 3, was a magical day in Northfield. For the first time in three years Vintage Band Festival was again able to present Tuba Christmas to the Northfield community. 2022 is the 49th anniversary year of Tuba Christmas, an event that is now celebrated in over 300 venues throughout the world.

Nearly 50 musicians were present on the stage in Skinner Memorial Chapel on the campus of Carleton College. The chapel was filled with an appreciative audience and everyone had a smile on their with the joy of being in community again and hearing the sound of low-brass music filling the space.

One registered player was not in his chair, but his tuba was on the stage adorned with a Tuba Christmas headband and a U.S. Navy flag. Nick Borene, a graduate of Northfield High School and now serving in the Navy on the west coast, wanted to attend this year, but couldn’t, so his parents registered him and brought his tuba to the event. We were glad to welcome him in absentia!

Thanks to the members of the VBF board who were on hand to register the musicians, welcome the audience and sell music books and Tuba Christmas apparel. Thanks also to Carleton College for co-hosting and sponsoring the event for the fourth time. See you again in 2023!

Tuba Christmas 2022 in Northfield

There hasn’t been a Tuba Christmas in Northfield since 2019. We’re excited to bring you the following announcement.

Vintage Band Festival is presenting Tuba Christmas 2022 in Northfield, Minnesota on Saturday, December 3 at 3pm. The event will take place in Skinner Memorial Chapel, 405 1st St. E. on the campus of Carleton College. Retired St. Olaf College professor Dr. Paul Niemisto will be the conductor of Tuba Christmas 2022.

Tuba Christmas is an annual event that brings together euphonium, baritone, sousaphone and tuba players of all ages to play Christmas carols for the enjoyment of family, friends and the general public. The music made by dozens of low brass instruments playing as a choir is an experience not to be missed, either as a participant or as a listener.

2022 is the 49th anniversary of Tuba Christmas concerts/events which are presented throughout the world. Tuba Christmas was conceived in 1974 by tubist Harvey Phillips of Indiana University as a tribute to his teacher and mentor William J. Bell, born on Christmas Day, 1902. The first Tuba Christmas was conducted by Paul Lavalle at New York City’s Rockefeller Plaza Ice Rink on Sunday, December 22, 1974.

There are now over 300 Tuba Christmas events produced annually throughout the United States and internationally. Registration for participants in Northfield’s Tuba Christmas will open at noon on December 3. Registration fee is $10. There will be a rehearsal at 1:00 pm and the performance will be at 3:00 pm. Music played at Tuba Christmas will be from “Carols for a Merry Tuba Christmas” which will be available for purchase at registration. Participants should bring a music stand if possible. Details for the event can be found at www.vintagebandfestival.org .

Tuba Christmas 2022 in Northfield is made possible with generous assistance from Carleton College.

Tuba Christmas in Northfield 2021 is CANCELLED!

Today’s public service announcement: the Vintage Band Festival Board has recently CANCELLED Tuba Christmas in Northfield for 2021. The event was to have been held on Saturday, December 4, but has been cancelled due to COVID-19 protocols at the venue. We’re saddened by this change in plans, but feel this is the correct decision at this time.

Thanks for your understanding. We’re hoping for a better situation in 2022!

Trumpets and tubas at #VBF2021

Two brass ensembles that will perform at #VBF2021 each specialize in a specific instrument. Twin Cities Trumpet Ensemble produces a wall-of-sound made by 24 trumpets. The Above Average Tuba Quartet consists of tubas, the lowest of the low-brass instruments. Both groups will provide maximum listening entertainment.

ABOVE AVERAGE TUBA QUARTET

The Above Average Tuba Quartet was formed in 2013 by members of the Lake Wobegon© Brass Band and is making its Vintage Band Festival debut. Leader Roger Gomoll noted that tubas and euphoniums are related instruments. The euphonium is considered to be a “tenor tuba” and plays an octave higher than the larger bass tuba and double bass tuba. He also said, “Tubists and euphoniumists tend to gather in larger groups around Christmastime, when as many as 100 or more festively dressed players perform Christmas carols as part of the nationally organized Tuba Christmas concerts. It’s been said but not verified that the U.S. Geological Survey office tracks the frequency and location of these concerts with their seismic instruments.”

Above Average Tuba Quartet

The Above Average Tuba Quartet performs at 9:30 a.m. on July 31 at Bridge Square, Downtown Northfield.

TWIN CITIES TRUMPET ENSEMBLE

The Twin Cities Trumpet Ensemble is the only regularly performing, 24-trumpet musical ensemble in the United States. It boasts a vast repertoire, ranging from the Renaissance to the present, and exemplifies the transformative power of music through the performance of music written or arranged for three or more trumpets. It has performed numerous concerts in the tri-state area, including performances at Como Lakeside Pavilion in St. Paul, the Lake Harriet Band Shell in Minneapolis, and several churches. Led by James Olcott, the Twin Cities Trumpet Ensemble has performed at Vintage Band Festival several times.

Twin Cities Trumpet Ensemble

Twin Cities Trumpet Ensemble performs at 12:30 p.m. on July 31 at Bridge Square, Downtown Northfield.