Dimitri Tiomkin’s music from the holiday classic film, It’s a Wonderful Life, wafted across the U.S. and Canada in concert performances this past December.

The community gathered in Evansville, Indiana, on the afternoon of December 5 for a reprise of the annual Evansville Philharmonic Peppermint Pops show. Conductor Alfred Savia directed the Evansville Philharmonic Orchestra and Chorus and guest artist singer Steve Amerson in a performance of the concert suite for It’s a Wonderful Life published by Hal Leonard (see October 2009 news).

Before the final bows in Evansville the “It’s a Wonderful Concert” was getting underway less than 300 miles away, in North Manchester, Indiana. The Manchester Symphony Orchestra (MSO), in its 72nd season, performed seasonal music by Handel, Tiomkin, Vaughan Williams, and others. For It’s a Wonderful Life, conductor Scott Humphries led the MSO and Manchester College A Cappella Choir.

Further northwest, across the border in Canada, one could attend the “The Edmonton Symphony Orchestra presents Christmas Pops” on December 17. On the second half of the concert, conductor Robert Bernhardt paired It’s A Wonderful Life with a suite from The Polar Express, music by Alan Silvestri. During the It’s a Wonderful Life “Christmas Eve Finale” featuring the traditional holiday tune “Auld Lang Syne,” the audience joined in to sing, according to reviewer Daria Belseck.

“It’s a Wonderful Life” is available as a concert suite from Hal Leonard. The next Tiomkin concert suite from Hal Leonard has gone to press. Check back for full details.

Sources

• Lutz, Jonathan. “12.05.10 – REVIEW: Peppermint Pops ‘Deck the Halls’ with Christmas Tunes,” December 5, 2010
• Belseck, Daria. “CHRISTMAS POPS – Edmonton Symphony Orchestra,” January 1, 2011