The deep, yet festive, reverberations of low brass instrument will fill a north Peoria church next weekend in a first of its kind performance in the city.
"Tuba Christmas" is a holiday tradition rooted in 1970's New York City, but it's since cropped up all over the country.
Dan Dietrich is a retired Illinois Valley Central High School music teacher and a co-organizer of this event. He said the idea to host "Tuba Christmas" in Peoria was actually borne out of a Halloween performance.
Richwoods High School senior Brady Reneau is a tube euphonium player who studies with Dietrich. He and his father had orchestrated a spooky tuba concert with more than 30 players at the Soderstrom Castle on Grandview Drive.
"It went over real huge," said Dietrich. "And all the people that were there playing, all the players that were there just said, 'We gotta do a Tuba Christmas.'"
One of Dietrich's former students helped land Reedemer Lutheran Church, 6801 N. Allen Rd., as a venue. From there, it was just a matter of rounding up tuba players from around Illinois. Dietrich estimates as many as 60 may turn out for Tuba Christmas in Peoria on Sunday, Dec. 22. It's an all-ages event - for audiences and performers alike.
"I know there's a former student of mine who's bringing her junior high student to play. So there'll be kids everywhere from 11, to my former teacher. The lady who taught me trombone at Mackinaw, Dolores Brown, is going to be there, and Mrs. Brown is in her 90s," said Dietrich.
Dietrich said players of all abilities are welcome, and nobody is taking things too seriously. Performers are expected to don their best fun holiday attire, rather than stuffy formal clothes.
"Nobody's wearing a tux unless it's a tux that's got Santa Claus all over," Dietrich said.
It's even not unheard of for a tuba player to attempt to dress up their instrument in gift wrap, even if that does give it a rather "buzzy" tone. The music parts are all very playable, Dietrich said.
"You don't have to be a virtuoso," he said. "You don't have to be a great player to perform in this."
The concert is expected to take about an hour. Dietrich said a homogenous assemblage of tubas produces a rather unique sound, but attendees shouldn't worry about it getting too loud.
"Everybody's going to play at a nice, medium, mezzo forte level, and it's going to be a gentle sound," Dietrich said. "And it's a really huge church, so that sound is going to blend. The acoustics in that room should be just amazing."
Registration for interested performers is at 1 p.m. on Dec. 22. There is a $10 registration fee to help pay for expenses. Rehearsal starts at 1:30 p.m. The concert begins at 3:30 p.m. and is free for the public to attend. Donations to support Redeemer Lutheran Church as thanks for allowing usage of their chuch for the event will be taken. Contact Dan Dietrich with questions.
