Mannheim Steamroller Live in Concert Dec. 26, 2010 at the Adrienne Arsht Center Miami Fl

With the holiday season in full swing and Christmas just around the corner there is one thing for certain these days: come the day after Thanksgiving holiday tunes will fill the air and there's an excellent chance Mannheim Steamroller will be somewhere in the mix. Chip Davis (composer) was one of the driving forces behind the electronic new age movement back in the 1970's. This was before New Age Music was known as 'New Age Music.' The term 'elevator music' may be more familiar to you but the New Age sound and its development was far away not your typical instrumental sounds coming from your mall elevator or escalator speakers. In 1974 Davis founded his own record label (no one would release his music) American Gramaphone and created the fictitious band Mannheim Steamroller. His first releases under his Fresh Aire monogram (there are quite a few sequels) were essentially classical music performed on electric instruments and synthesizers. New Age Music had begun to take on a whole new sound and was not merely mood music to fall asleep to. For many especially these days it was a way to relax, meditate, practice yoga and find that inner peace that you can't find with any other genre of music.

It wasn't until 1984 that Davis really set the musical world on fire when his first seasonal album (they were called albums back then) "Mannheim Steamroller Christmas," was released and subsequently sold over five million copies. Thanks to Adult Contemporary radio and his rendition of "Deck The Halls," Mannheim became one of the largest selling Christmas releases to date; and it's still going strong. "Stille Nacht (Silent Night)" was Grammy Nominated for Best Instrumental Arrangement and is absolutely beautiful to listen to.

A Fresh Aire Christmas arrived four years later and once again became a hit not only on radio but in retail as well. In the 1990's Davis released subsequent cd's under his own name but kept the Mannheim name for his seasonal recordings. These include 1995's Christmas in the Aire, 1997's Christmas Live and 1998's Christmas Angel: A Family Story. 1999's two-disc 25 Years celebrated Mannheim Steamroller's silver anniversary. My personal favorite of all the holiday cd's is the first one. It truly is a breath of Fresh Aire.

The band's official web site is http://shop.mannheimsteamroller.com/ . Here you can find all things Steamroller including recordings, tour dates and official information. They will be rolling into the Adrienne Arsht Center in Miami on December 26, 2010 celebrating their 25th Anniversary of their annual Christmas tour. Tickets are still available and it should prove to be one festive holiday extravaganza.

For this and other performances log on to http://www.arshtcenter.org/perform/ for all things entertainment.

Tickets range from $40.00-$80.00. It's a great way to top your holiday season 2010.

The Adrienne Arsht Center is located at
1300 N. Biscayne Blvd.
Miami, FL 33132