Community band brings holiday cheer

Hannah Lambert Evergreen Reporter

A local band will spread some holiday cheer in the form of carols, costumes and an appearance by Santa Claus.

The Community Band of the Palouse will play a holiday concert Dec. 10 at the Gladish Community and Cultural Center.

The band, which has been around for nearly four decades, features community members ranging from high schoolers to those in their golden years, director Denise Snider said.

“We have some people who have been playing their instruments for fifty or sixty years, or more,” Snider said.

Ginny Hauser has played flute in the band since 2001. Hauser said a goal of the band is to continue bringing music to people of all ages.

Snider said the band averages 45 members with a strong WSU presence including current professors, retired faculty and students alike. She said all community members are welcome to join the band, even if they haven’t played in a while.

“With a little bit of time practicing, they might be pleasantly surprised about what they can do, and now science is proving that music is good for the physical, mental and emotional health of every age group,” she said.

Hauser said the band plays about six concerts per year, but Aufgehts, a smaller subset of the band, plays many more.

Snider said the band’s holiday concert will feature a mix of seasonal music for Christmas and Hanukkah as well as carols the audience can sing along to.

Tim Price, a retired music teacher, plays saxophone in the band.

“We try to play enough different styles that everybody will find something that they like,” Pierce said.

Snider said she hopes audience members will see the value of the community band.

“(We) come from so many different walks of life, but when we play music together we are all sharing something that we value. The shared experience, the beauty of the music, just having a nice time together.”

The concert is free to the public and families are welcome.

“We want to be family-friendly,” Snider said, “and we are conscious of the fact that, if we want this music to be played in the future, we want to expose young people to it, and we want children to get interested in playing instruments.”

Hauser said a band member dressed as Santa Claus will play in the bass section.

“He will be handing out gifts to the children who come,” she said.