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"My Favorite Things" holiday concert coming to APSU Dec. 7

           CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. – Here are a few things that David Steinquest, Austin Peay State University professor of music, enjoys: the holidays, the APSU Percussion Ensemble, music by James Taylor and Dave Barnes and relaxed gatherings with friends. At 7:30 p.m. on Dec. 7, he’s bringing all these elements together for a special holiday concert, “My Favorite Things,” at the APSU Music/Mass Communication Building’s Mabry Concert Hall.

           CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. – Here are a few things that David Steinquest, Austin Peay State University professor of music, enjoys: the holidays, the APSU Percussion Ensemble, music by James Taylor and Dave Barnes and relaxed gatherings with friends. At 7:30 p.m. on Dec. 7, he’s bringing all these elements together for a special holiday concert, “My Favorite Things,” at the APSU Music/Mass Communication Building’s Mabry Concert Hall.

            The concert will feature a band made up of Steinquest’s favorite musicians – guitarist Paul Carrol Blinkley, bass player Brad Albin, drummer Matt DeVore and vocalists Allison Campbell and David Alford – performing on a stage decorated like a living room decked out for Christmas. Blinkley formerly played with the country music group Alabama, and Albin regularly performs with Vince Gill and The Time Jumpers. Alford can be seen every week on ABC’s “Nashville” as the character Bucky Dawes.  Accompanying Steinquest and this group of friends will be the APSU Percussion Ensemble.

            “I use the percussion ensemble in this concert kind of like an orchestra at a pops concert,” he said. “The percussion ensemble is an expansion of the sound. It’s just a bigger sound.”

            The evening’s holiday program will have a sort of pop/jazzy sound, featuring works by some of Steinquest’s favorite artists, including James Taylor’s arrangement of “Who Comes This Night” and Family Force 5’s arrangement of “My Favorite Things.”

            “A number of these tunes are ones people know, but I’ve taken them and adapted them,” he said. “What you get are songs you think you know, like ‘O Holy Night,’ but you’ll be saying, ‘I never would have imaged it that way.’ It’s almost bluegrass, with that sort of mellow sound.”

            The program will also feature the APSU Percussion Ensemble performing an arrangement by Steinquest titled “The Twelve Daze of Christmas.”

            “It goes through 12 different keys,” he said. “It gets really interesting and fun.”

            The evening, Steinquest assures, will be a relaxed, family-friendly event, more like a gathering of friends than a formal concert. Admission to the event is either two cans of food, donated to Loaves and Fishes, or $3. Contact the APSU Department of Music at 221-7818 for more information.