Audiences nationwide watched as “A St. Thomas Christmas: Jubilant Light” aired on the Public Broadcasting Service last December. Now, the broadcast has been nominated for an Emmy award at the 2016 Upper Midwest Chapter of the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences.
When every academic year begins, St. Thomas band students, choir students, faculty members and volunteers feverishly work to prepare for the Christmas production. Every December, multiple musical ensembles come together to play in Orchestra Hall, and every other year a different St. Thomas production is broadcasted to people across the nation on PBS.
Senior Aaron VanDanacker, who has participated in St. Thomas choirs for four years, recognizes how many different people put in hard work in preparation of the concerts.
“It’s really something that we start from day one of the semester,” VanDanacker said. “There’s so much (work) between what the artistic director for it is doing for it, what the student workers are doing for it, PBS, and even just volunteers in the ensembles.”
The nominated Christmas production featured a piece written specifically for the St. Thomas ensembles to perform: Jubilant Light. Nine of the university’s musical ensembles came together on stage, including the string orchestra’s first appearance in the concert. Artists from the Twin Cities were selected to play from the balconies of the hall during the original piece to add to the intensity of the atmosphere.
VanDanacker believes “Jubilant Light” was the piece that set this year’s production apart from previous years.
“The band was just blaring for about four minutes, and then they had at least 12 brass players who were hired in to stand in the balcony and also blare from there, too,” VanDanacker said. “That one left everybody jaw-dropped.”
Last year’s broadcast is the second St. Thomas Christmas concert to be nominated for this award. Artistic Director Matthew George said that, since they did not win the last time they were nominated, the goal this year is to take home the trophy.
“It’s an honor. It’s great to be nominated,” George said. “But having been nominated before, we want to win it.”
The St. Thomas production is competing against three other nominees in the Special Event Coverage category, including a performance by Ballet Quad Cities, a soul ensemble performance by Sonny Knight and the Lakers, and a performance by Circus Juventas.
Senior Claire Sayers plays in the string orchestra, and she believes the diversity of the Christmas concert sets it apart from the other nominees.
“It’s such a big group of diverse people. Anybody could watch it and feel like they could be a part of that,” Sayers said. “It came together really well. Everybody did the best that they could.”
Televising the event provides a unique experience for the students knowing people around the nation may be watching them perform. Kara Bradshaw, director of marketing and communications at the College of Arts and Sciences, said airing the event on television gives the distant St. Thomas community the chance to watch the event and stay connected.
“I think it provides an opportunity for our students’ friends and family who live outside of the Twin Cities to be able to watch them perform,” Bradshaw said. “It’s also a way for our alumni who live outside of the region to stay connected to St. Thomas and the music department.”
The excitement of the much anticipated concert along with the intensity of playing in a historic musical hall creates another experience for music students unlike many others.
“It always seems like, when people leave, they have kind of had an electrifying experience. Because when you get hundreds of people on stage… it shakes the walls of that place and leaves people leaving with their mouths open,” VanDanacker said.
Along with all of the efforts within the university, Bradshaw and George recognize TPT as a contributor to the success of the production.
“Our job is to sound good,” George said. “They make it look good.”
Winners of the Upper Midwest Emmys will be announced on Oct. 29.
Kassie Vivant can be reached at viva0001@stthomas.edu