2023-12-20 Maine Pops Concert Band Christmas Benefit Concert at St. Luke’s Cathedral in Portland

he Maine Pops Concert Band concluded its Christmas holiday benefit concert series tonight with a performance at St. Luke’s Cathedral on State Street in Portland, ME.

A very large crowd attended the 90-minute performance which also included a 15-minute prelude by the band’s flute choir. The band performed the following compositions:

The Most Wonderful Time of the Year
A Fireside Christmas
Bashana Haba ‘ah
Brazilian Sleigh Bells
Lux Aurumque
Pat-a-Pan
Winter Rhapsody
Sleigh Ride
Gesu Bambino
Still, Still, Still
Christmas Music for Winds
Hallelujah Chorus.

The band will now take a two-week break and resume rehearsals on Wednesday, January 10 at 7 p.m. The location will be determined soon, as Scarborough High School will be conducting their winter band concert that evening.

(Photos by Steve Barrett.)

2023-12-13 Mountainside Community Church Holiday Benefit Concert

The first of two holiday benefit concerts is complete – a very successful performance by the Maine Pops Concert Band at Mountainside Community Church in Falmouth, Maine.

A very large audience jammed the pews inside the church sanctuary to hear the Maine Pops perform the following holiday compositions:

The Most Wonderful Time of the Year
A Fireside Christmas
Bashana Haba ‘ah
Brazilian Sleigh Bells
Lux Aurumque
Pat-a-Pan
Sleigh Ride
Gesu Bambino
Still, Still, Still
Christmas Music for Winds
Hallelujah Chorus

In addition, Mountainside pastor Mac Ray announced that the audience raised nearly $1000 to support the Falmouth Food Pantry – a donation matched by Mountainside for a $2000 total donation.

The band will have their final holiday concert of 2023 on Wednesday, December 20, at St. Luke’s Cathedral in Portland, beginning at 7 p.m. Prior to the concert, the band’s flute choir will perform ensemble work around 6:45 p.m.

(Photos by Steve Barrett)

Maine Pops Concert Band Announces its 2023 Holiday Concert Schedule

The Maine Pops Concert Band – serving communities in the greater Portland area – has announced its concert schedule for the 2023 holiday season.

The band will hold its first holiday concert at 7 p.m. on Wednesday, December 13 at the Mountainside Community Church, located at 18 Mountain Road in Falmouth, ME. The event continues a long tradition of holiday concerts between the Maine Pops and the church and proceeds from the Mountainside performance will go to humanitarian efforts in the Portland region.

Band Pops Conductor David Watts has selected the following music for the Mountainside concert:
The Most Wonderful Time of the Year
A Fireside Christmas
Bashana Haba ‘ah
Brazilian Sleigh Bells
Lux Aurumque
Pat-a-Pan
Winter Rhapsody
Sleigh Ride
Gesu Bambino
Still, Still, Still
Christmas Music for Winds
Hallelujah Chorus

The December 13 concert will have a livestream available through the Mountainside Community Church. The link to the livestream is https://youtube.com/live/nWsI106MeX0?feature=share and will start at 6:45 p.m.

On December 20, the band will return to St. Luke’s Cathedral, located at 143 State Street in Portland, for its final holiday benefit concert. The performance – also slated for 7 p.m. – is also an annual event on the Maine Pops calendar. As with the Mountainside performance, proceeds are going to the church’s humanitarian efforts in and around the Portland area.

For more information, please contact president@mainepops.org or sbarrett@mainepops.org.

The Maine Pops Concert Band is a 501(c)3 educational non-profit corporation. Contributions may be tax-deductible.