Mannheim experience
Even if the “Mannheim” part is a bit obscure, the “Steamroller” part is certainly apt.
Chip Davis has created a commercial steamroller and marketing juggernaut with his best-selling Mannheim Steamroller Christmas CDs – and it certainly doesn’t stop with CDs.
You can also buy Mannheim Steamroller hot chocolate mix, pumpkin pie spice, plum chutney or a bath and body basket.
But if it’s the music you want to bathe in, all you have to do is snap up a couple of tickets to the Mannheim Steamroller’s Christmas Celebration Tour, which pulls into the Spokane Arena on Tuesday at 7:30 p.m.
Like their last appearance in 2001, this is more than just a concert. It’s an entire family-friendly experience.
“First off, when you walk in, you’re greeted by 50 costumed characters wandering around the hallways,” said Davis by phone from his Omaha headquarters. “Those would be elves and snowmen. They’re all hired locally.
“And remember, I always encourage people to bring their cameras. We’re sort of the opposite of other acts. This is about family and memorable experiences for mom and dad, but especially for the kids. So bring your camera and take pictures of the snowmen with your kids.”
As for the music, fans can expect the usual Mannheim Steamroller mix of Renaissance lutes, soaring synthesizers, symphonic strings and big, arena-rock arrangements. Every tune will have a Christmas theme, which, surprisingly enough, is a departure from previous Mannheim Steamroller Christmas tours.
“We’ve typically done a couple of cuts from Fresh Aire (the group’s original New Age series) and the other series, to show off everything that Mannheim does,” said Davis. “Then the second half would be devoted to Christmas. This year, since we’re celebrating 20 years of Mannheim Christmas – and with the wealth of material I’ve got now – it’s very easy to do an all-Christmas show.”
The Mannheim Steamroller formula consists of taking a familiar Christmas tune and giving it a new, sonically audacious arrangement that combines the traditional with the high-tech (a kind of “Switched-On Christmas” concept).
Two versions of “God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen” on the new “Mannheim Steamroller Christmas Celebration” CD illustrate two sides of Davis’ musical personality.
“That song comes from around the Renaissance time, and so the first version is done in the spirit and style of that time (with recorder and lute),” said Davis. “The second version, the rocked-out version, is like, OK, here is what Chip would do with it, Mannheim style. It’s showing my classical style and showing the side that loves the more modern-day rock rhythms and instruments.”
It would be a safe bet to say that nearly everybody in America has heard Mannheim Steamroller’s Christmas music, even if they don’t know it. Since Davis issued “Mannheim Steamroller Christmas” in 1984, the group’s versions of familiar songs like “Silent Night” have been ubiquitous in shopping malls and anywhere else with a loudspeaker.
It’s also familiar in living rooms across America. More than 25 million copies of the Mannheim Christmas CDs have been sold.
Now Mannheim Steamroller has branched out into other holidays as well: a “Romantic Melodies” series themed to Valentine’s Day, a Halloween series (with music and spooky sound effects) and an “American Spirit” series aimed at the Fourth of July.
How are all of these working?
“Well, we were No. 1, 2 and 3 on the Billboard New Age chart (three weeks ago),” said Davis. “No. 1 was the ‘Halloween Monster Mix,’ No. 2 was ‘Christmas Celebration’ and No. 3 was the ‘Halloween’ two-disc set. So it’s going pretty well.”
Fans can meet Davis in person a day before the concert. He will be signing CDs on Monday from 4:30 to 6 p.m. at Huppins Hi-Fi, Photo and Video, 421 W. Main Ave.
This event will also serve as the kick-off for Huppins’ annual Christmast fund-raiser. The store will sell Mannheim Steamroller gift packs, including a CD and Christmas ornament, for $20, with all of the proceeds going to the Second Harvest Food Bank of the Inland Northwest.