From behind the baton

Please keep the date open: Sunday, April 1, 2007 @ 7:00 PM.
Bud

From behind the baton

Would you like to sing in an Easter musical using the latest in DVD technology to present a powerful interactive Easter worship experience using filmed DVD Biblical characters, live narration, live choir and soloists?

Bud

ps less than 12 weeks til Easter

January 14, 2006

THE TOP TEN REASONS MEN SHOULD JOIN OUR CHURCH CHOIR:

10. Rehearsals are every Sunday morning. Which means for that short time, you will significantly reduce your risk of contracting tendentious from nonstop operation of a television remote control or computer mouse.

9. Because we sometimes wear choir robes, you will be liberated from the task many men find quite challenging… finding clothes that match properly.

8. From your special vantagepoint every Sunday, in which you look out at the entire congregation from the choir, you can develop interesting new hobbies. Among these is a little guessing game called "Who's Praying, Who's Sleeping?"

7. On the other hand, standing in full view of the congregation on a weekly basis makes it much less likely that you yourself will give in to a chronic lack of sleep. Although it has been known to happen.

6. If you think your singing in the shower sounds good now, just wait till you've been singing with us for a few weeks.

5. Singing in a choir is one of the few activities for men that does not require electronics equipment or expensive power tools. This could be good for the family budget.

4. For the fitness buffs, singing in the Choir is not only heart healthy, it's soul healthy. Also, there are no monthly membership fees, and it's a lot easier on the knees than jogging.

3. If you think you've done everything there is to do, and there are no great challenges left in life, try singing with us guys and staying on pitch.

2. Choir rehearsal lasts half as long as a professional football game but is at least twice as satisfying. This is especially true if you are a long-suffering fan of the Buffalo Bills. (Don't worry, though, the rehearsals are on Sunday mornings, not Monday Nights.)

And the number 1 reason men should join the choir:

1. When people ask you whether you've been behaving yourself, you can say with the utmost sincerity,

"Hey, I'm a Church Choir Boy."

From the Choir Loft

If you know someone who can sing or thinks they can sing, we would love for them to join our choir. The Bible says: "Make a joyful noise unto the Lord." (Psalm 98:4) The motto of our choir is: "You bring the ‘noise’, and we’ll make it ‘joyful!’" All are welcome…all are needed!

How much is a sermon worth?

One beautiful Sunday morning, a minister announced to his congregation: "My good people, I have here in my hands three sermons... a $100 sermon that lasts five minutes, a $50 sermon that lasts fifteen minutes, and a $10 sermon that lasts a full hour. We will now take the collection and see which one I'll deliver."

Today in history

1952 – The ‘Today Show’ premiered with Dave Garroway & Jack Lescoulie on NBC – TV

1914 – Henry Ford introduced the "assembly line"

Church office: 672-2048, Bud: 934-7734, email: tubamanbud@yahoo.com
www.frombudsworld.blogspot.com

Bud’s

History of the Hymns

January 14, 2007

‘Come Thou Fount Of Every Blessing’

(1813) page 400

Words by: Robert Robinson (1735 - 1790)

Music: Wyeth’s Book of Sacred Music (1813)

Turning to the young Robert Robinson, the bleary-eyed gypsy fortune-teller pointed a quivering finger and said, "And you, young man, you will live to see your children and your grandchildren." Robert Robinson suddenly paled and said, "You’re right. She’s too drunk to know what she’s saying. Leave her alone. Let’s go." But her words haunted him the rest of the day. "If I’m going to live to see my children and grandchildren," he thought, "I’ll have to change my way of living." That very night, half in fun and half seriously, he took his gang to a nearby open-air revival service where the famous evangelist, George Whitfield, was preaching. "We’ll go down and laugh at the poor deluded Methodist," he explained. Two years and seven months after hearing that sermon, twenty-year-old Robert Robinson made his peace with God, and "found full and free forgiveness through the precious blood of Jesus Christ."

Joining the Methodists, and feeling the call to preach, the self-taught Robinson was appointed by John Wesley to the Calvinist Methodist Chapel, Norfolk, England. And there, for the celebration of Pentecost ("Whitsunday"), in 1858, three years after his marvelous conversion, he penned his spiritual autobiography in the words of this hymn.

‘Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing’

is a Christian hymn composed by the 18th century Methodist pastor and hymnist Robert Robinson set to an American folk tune. Robinson penned the words at age 22 in the year 1758.

Meanwhile…1813…194 years ago…in the United States…

President: James Madison…V.P.: Elbridge Gerry

Approximately 7 million people lived in the United States

U.S. troops captured York, Canada (at present site of Toronto)

Mary Bosanquet Fletcher became a deaconess in the Methodist Church

The favorite musical instruments were the fiddle, tambourine, and "bones"

The Iroquois battled fellow Mohawks on the Niagara Frontier in War of 1812

In April of 1813, the village of Buffalo is incorporated with a population of 500

In December of 1813, 700 British troops burn the village of Buffalo to the ground

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From behind the baton

There are only 10 weeks until Palm Sunday and only 11 weeks until Easter!

Stay tuned for our Easter plans...

Bud

From Behind the Baton

How many choir directors does it take to change a light bulb?
No one knows, because no one ever watches the choir director!

Bud

From behind the baton

I'm making preliminary plans for an Easter musical (Easter is early this year...April 8!). I am planning to present an Easter musical on Palm Sunday, April 1 at 7:00 PM.

I would like to do a new Easter musical using DVD technology, which includes orchestra background and accompanying video presentation. The Easter story is told by Biblical characters, who are interviewed in a "60 Minutes" style allowing the audience to experience the Easter story through their eyes.

I need to know the best night for a weekly choir rehearsal. Let me know your #1 - #4 choice of evenings.

Bud

From behind the baton

HAPPY NEW YEAR...
It's already been 3 weeks since our Christmas concerts and the responses have been impressive! I've received so many compliments, it's hard to find a cap to fit my large head. We had a full house and both the choir and drama group did an outstanding job! I thought I'd share just one of the many wonderful (and true) compliments I've received.
Just one of my "special" guests in the audience was Dr. Kate Levy (assistant professor of music education) from the Fredonia School of Music. She wrote:
"We were honored to be there. The group sounded wonderful and looked totally involved. I thought your show came off beautifully, and I enjoyed the opportunity to watch you work..."
I would like to begin preparing for an upcoming Easter musical. Are you ready? I need you!
Bud

January 7, 2007

From Bud's World

You know you’re a real "Western New Yorker" when:

1. 
   
   You know several people who have hit a deer more than once.
   
   
   
   
   
   
2. 
   
   You often switch from "heat" to "A/C" in the same day and back again.
   
   
   
   
   
   
3. 
   
   You can drive 65 mph through 2 feet of snow during a raging blizzard, without flinching.
   
   
   
   
   
   
4. 
   
   You design your kid's Halloween costume to fit over a snowsuit.
   
   
   
   
   
   
5. 
   
   Driving is better in the winter because the potholes are filled with snow.
   
   
   
   
   
   
6. 
   
   You know all 4 seasons: "almost winter," " winter," "still winter" and "road construction."
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
7. 
   
   "Down South" to you means Erie, Pa.
   
   
   
   
   
   
8. 
   
   You find ‘0’ degrees "a little chilly."
   
   
   
   
   
   
9. 
   
   You go out to fish fry every Friday, Prime Rib on Saturday and bingo every Wednesday.
   
   
   
   
   
   
10. 
    
    Your 4th of July picnic was moved indoors due to frost.

From the Choir Loft

If you know someone who can sing or thinks they can, we would love for them to join our choir. The Bible says: "Make a joyful noise unto the Lord." (Psalm 98:4) The motto of our choir is and will always be: "You bring the ‘noise,’ and we’ll make it ‘joyful!’"

All are welcome…all are needed!

Wit or Wisdom?

"You cannot live a perfect day without doing something for someone who will never be able to repay you."

- John Wooden

"True friends are those who really know you but love you anyway."

- Edna Buchanan

"Treat your friends as you do your pictures, and place them in their best light."

- Jennie Jerome Churchill (Mother of Winston Churchill)

"Only the mediocre are always at their best."

- Jean Giraudoux

"Don’t cry because it’s over – smile because it happened."

- Anonymous

Today in history

(January 7)

1990 – The Tower of Pisa was closed because it "leaned too far."

1985 – The ‘King and I’ opened on Broadway (the 1^st of 191 performances)

1967 – The "Newlywed Game" premiered on ABC – TV

1963 – First Class postage was raised from 4 cents to 5 cents

1929 – ‘Buck Rogers’ became the 1^st sci-fi comic strip

1927 – The Harlem Globetrotters played their 1^st game in Hinckley, Ill.

1890 – W.B. Pervis patented the fountain pen

1830 – The 1^st railroad station in the U.S. opened in Baltimore

Church office: 672-2048, Bud: 934-7734, email:

tubamanbud@yahoo.com

www.frombudsworld.blogspot.com

Bud’s

History of the Carols

January 7, 2007

"The Twelve Days of Christmas"

(Traditional)

Said to date from the 9^th century rule of Alfred the Great is the custom of giving one’s true love a gift every day of the period spanning Christmas Day and

"Epiphany" (January 6). The day of Epiphany is when the Wise Men were said to have arrived at Bethlehem from the east with their offerings to the Holy Child in the manger. (Their gold, frankincense and myrrh originated the whole custom of Christmas presents.) If we attempt to approximate the number of gifts sent each day according to the strict formula the words of the song suggest, there would have to have been a barnyard full of milking maids. For example 40 gold rings, a cotillion of dancing ladies and a flotilla of other tokens – in all a total of 364 valuable gifts, or one for each day of the year.

And if one could not afford all the gifts, one could at least sing this melodic recitation of them. The energetic setting we know is very likely an American imitation of old English carols. Fred Waring and His Pennsylvanians made it popular in the 1930’s, first on radio and thereafter by staged performances on television.

The approximate cost of sending the gifts today…

At the end of the 12 days, the carolers in the song have crooned about the 364 presents including 12 partridges in a pear tree, 36 calling birds, 40 maids-a-milking, 22 pipers piping and so on -- the grand total of the song's 12 days of gifts is approximately:

$58,405.09

And the legal result of sending these gifts today might be…

December 25th (From the law offices Taeker, Spendar, and Baegar)

Dear Sir:

This is to acknowledge your latest gift of twelve fiddlers fiddling, which you have sent to our client, Miss Sue M. Now. The end result of your 12 consecutive days of daily gifts was devastating to our client. All further correspondence should come to our attention. If you should attempt to reach

Miss Now at Happy Dale Sanitarium, the attendants have instructions to shoot you on sight.

With this letter, please find attached a warrant for your arrest.

-Happy Holiday

December 31, 2006

Previous New Year’s Resolutions:

2003: "I will go to church every Sunday.

" 2004: "I will go to church as often as possible."

2005: "I will pray & meditate daily."

2006: "I will try to catch a sermonette on TV."

2007: ???????

The History of Christmas Toys

The most commonly accepted story of the invention of Monopoly centers on Charles Darrow, an unemployed engineer from Germantown, Pennsylvania. As the legend goes, Darrow created the game on an oil cloth on his kitchen table, all the while dreaming of fame, fortune, and summers spent on the Jersey shore, which explains the game's Atlantic City street names. It is true that Charles Darrow presented the game to Parker Brothers in 1934, but was turned down because the company felt the game, which they said had "fifty-two fundamental design errors," was too complicated and would take too long to play. In 1935, after Darrow had some success selling the game on his own, Parker Brothers reconsidered and bought the rights to Monopoly for an undisclosed sum.

Happy New Year From the Choir Loft

Thanks to everyone involved in the presentation of our Christmas musical. We presented the exciting Christmas drama: "A 1940's Christmas Homecoming" on two separate nights at two separate churches. On December 10th, we presented it in Silver Creek, NY at the First United Church to a very nice crowd. On December 17th, we presented it to a full church at our own Sheridan United Church in Sheridan, NY. I thank each and every one of you for your time and sacrifice. In a small church like ours, it takes an effort from everyone. My wish for all of you is a blessed New Year filled with God’s blessings for you, your family and loved ones.

2007...Some of you have been asking about the plans of our Community Chorus for the upcoming year. Our plans at this point, are Easter, July 4th, and Christmas concerts. We are working on joining forces with the Cattaraugus Community Choir, Westfield Community Choir, and adding every singer in our area.

For Easter, I'm looking at a great piece with an accompanying DVD video presentation. It is a sequel to the "Eyes of Faith" piece we did a few years ago. It follows the Easter story and includes interviews with many of the Bible characters leading up to and following the crucifixion. You won't want to miss this one. It is exciting and we need you!

History of the Carols

‘Auld Lang Syne’

Robert Burns, the most famous of Scottish poets, discovered the lyrics for ‘Auld Land Syne’ in the course of his travels about the Highland countryside. The words and the tune somehow crossed the Atlantic, where it became the marching song at the University of Virginia. When bandleader Guy Lombardo programmed it into his concert at the University of Virginia in 1932 with the ‘Auld Lang Syne’ as a closing number at a college dance, the students cheered in recognition of "their" tune. As a result, Guy Lombardo decided to make it his regular closing number.

Today, the familiar music and words (the title translates literally as "

old long since") are sung as a farewell to the old year and a ritual of parting in virtually all English-speaking countries. And for more than half a century, it was featured on Guy Lombardo and His Royal Canadians’ famous New Year’s Eve radio and television broadcasts, heard throughout most of the world.

Most important world event of 2006

(from the Bud’s World News Department)

With the E. coli spinach & lettuce contamination, Democrats gaining control of Congress, The 2006 Winter Games in Turin, Italy, The Congressman Mark Foley scandal, The Cardinals’ victory in the World Series, The Steelers’ victory in the Super Bowl, The Bucky Phillips search, The shooting at the Amish school…

We feel THE MOST IMPORTANT WORLD EVENT OF 2006 WAS…

Pastor Molly Golando’s 1^st Sunday @ Sheridan United Methodist Church (7/2/06)

Church office: (716) 672-2048, Bud: (716) 934-7734, email: tubamanbud@yahoo.com

www.frombudsworld.blogspot.com

Happy New Year

From Bud’s

History of the Carols

December 31, 2006

"The Little Drummer Boy"

The legend of a young lad who wishes to give the newly born Christ Child a precious gift is an old one, and found in many countries. In Italy the boy has only an onion; in Spain he has an olive branch; in England he has the ability to juggle; in Holland he has a branch of freesia; in France he has his little drum.

Harry Simeone, once a choral conductor with Fred Waring, selected the latter as the basis for his winsome Christmas song titled ‘The Little Drummer Boy.’ Impulsively joining the solemn trip of the three kings, with their splendid offerings of fragrant myrrh, pungent frankincense and gleaming gold, the boy realizes in dismay that all he has is his hand drum. Crestfallen, he nonetheless approaches the Babe in the manger and lays the drum at His feet. Only then does he notice the tender, radiant smile that appears for an instant on the face of the Holy Child. His modest gift is not without merit after all.

With its brave little melody and its "prmm, prmm, prmm" accompaniment, ‘The Little Drummer Boy’ has inspired a number of best-selling recordings, chief among them Simeone’s own (in 1958) with his choral group.

It happened on January 1^st…

1985 – New York State became the 1^st

state in the U.S. with a mandatory seat belt law

1984 – The AT&T Corporation was broken up into 22 "Baby Bell" companies

1971 – Tobacco ads totaling $20 million were banned from Television & radio

1967 – The KC Chiefs beat The Buffalo Bills 31 –7 in AFL championship game

1908 – The 1^st "Ball Drop," signaling the New Year, took place in New York City

1902 – 1^st Tournament of Roses (Rose Bowl) collegiate football game in Pasadena

1898 – Manhattan, The Bronx, Brooklyn, Queens & Staten Island merge to become NYC

1892 – Ellis Island was first opened as an immigration station near the Statue of Liberty

1863 – President Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation freeing slaves

1808 – The United States 1^st prohibited the importation of slaves from Africa

1797 – Albany became the capital of New York replacing New York City

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From behind the baton

Sometimes it takes a lot of work to make great memories!

One of my pet peeves is all the news coverage and discussion during the Christmas season dwelling on the negatives. Covering the worst activities, the most negative actions of the few, and the most depressing news the reporters can dig up. Pick up the newspaper or turn on the TV and you would swear everyone is sitting home alone in a depressing stupor and there isn't one person out there having a great time with their family and loved ones during these wonderful holidays.

Our choir and drama group just spent 13 weeks preparing to present our Christmas musical. We rehearsed each song, each, phrase, and each measure over and over to make it sound right. We practiced each line, each entrance and each gesture with the actors in the drama group.

Sometimes we forget how much work and effort our parents put into creating our wonderful memories of holidays gone by.

As we enter the new year, think about putting forth that extra effort into making your new memories positive ones. Whether it's planning activities with your family or joining your local church choir to help out your poor choir director.

Happy New Year to you and yours!

December 24, 2006

Merry Christmas From Bud's World

The Candy Cane Legend

"Look at the Candy cane…What do you see? Stripes that are red…Like blood shed for me

White for my Savior…Who’s sinless and pure! ‘J’’ is for Jesus… ‘My lord,’ that’s for sure!

Turn it around…and a staff you will see… Jesus my shepherd…Was born for me!"

Many years ago, a candy maker wanted to make a candy cane at Christmas time that would serve as witness to his Christian faith. He wanted to incorporate several symbols for the birth, ministry and death of Jesus. He began with a stick of pure white hard candy; white to symbolize the Virgin Birth and the sinless nature of Jesus; hard to symbolize the solid rock, the foundation of the church; firmness to represent the promise of God.

The candy maker made the candy in the form of a "J" to represent the name of Jesus, who came to earth as our Savior. He thought it could also represent the staff of the Good Shepherd, with which He reached down into the ditches of the world to lift out the fallen lambs that, like all sheep, have gone astray.

Thinking that the candy was somewhat plain, the candy maker stained it with red stripes. He used three small stripes to show the stripes of the scourging Jesus received and by which we are all healed. The large red stripe was for the Promise of eternal life. Unfortunately, the candy became known as a candy cane – a meaningless decoration seen at Christmas time. But the true meaning is still there for those who have eyes to see and ears to hear.

Christmas Trivia:

What popular children's cracker was introduced in 1902 as a Christmas ornament?

The National Biscuit Company introduced the Barnum’s Animal Cracker and box. The box, as it does today,

had a string designed so that the box could be hung as a Christmas ornament.

In 1939 Robert May created what Christmas figure as a Christmas

promotion for Montgomery Ward department store in Chicago?

Rudolph the Red Noised Reindeer.

In the 1920’s what world wide beverage company adopted the

Santa Claus figures for a winter advertising promotion?

The Coca-Cola Company used Santa Claus to promote the idea that a soft drink

was a winter beverage as well as a summer beverage.

Who was the first United States ambassador to Mexico?

Joel Poinsett the developer of the popular Christmas Poinsettia flowers.

What popular Christmas candy had its debut and was given

out by a choirmaster in 1670 to quiet the noisy children?

The candy cane.

Which American President banned the Christmas Tree

from being displayed in the White House?

The environmentalist President Teddy Roosevelt.

In what year did Coca-Cola hire Haddon Sundblom to illustrate Santa Claus dressed in the red

Santa Claus suit and Santa Claus hat trimmed in white fur that helped standardize the image of the gift-bringer in the eyes of America?

Haddon Sunblom was hired to illustrate Santa Claus in 1931 and drew Santa Claus illustrations

Visit us at: www.frombudsworld.blogspot.com

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Merry Christmas

From Bud’s

History of the Carols

December 24, 2006

‘Silent Night, Holy Night’

(1818) pg. 239

Words by: Joseph Mohr (1792 - 1848) Music by: Franz Gruber (1787 - 1863)

On the afternoon of Christmas Eve in 1818, in a tiny village high in the Austrian Alps, Joseph Mohr, the local Catholic priest, sat writing some appropriate verses for the season. The church pipe organ had given out and the men summoned to repair it were unable to fix it in time for that evening’s service. The church organist, Franz Gruber, agreed to write out a simple tune for his pastor’s text, writing the music for a tenor, a bass, a chorus and a guitar. That very evening, the first performance of ‘Silent Night’ (‘Stille Nacht’) took place, unnoticed except for a few parishioners of St. Nicholas Church in Oberndorf, Austria on that Christmas day in 1818.

It may have been the organ repairmen, who finally brought the news of the lovely new carol to other villages in the Alps, though never mentioning either Gruber’s or Mohr’s name. For many years, neither man was aware of their Christmas song’s increasing popularity nor did the world know its creators. Even the English words we sing today were long unaccredited to the Reverend John Freeman Young, who made his translation and then modestly watched, without claiming his share of fame, as "Silent Night" became one of the most familiar Christmas carols in the world.

Christmas Day in History…

1939

– Montgomery Ward stores introduced ‘Rudolph’ the 9^th reindeer

1923

– 1^st electrically lit Christmas tree was displayed in the White House

1884

– Layne Hall of Silver Creek, NY was born (He would become

"The oldest legally licensed driver in U.S. history

" at 105 years of age)

1818

- 1^st U.S. performance of Handel’s ‘Messiah’ premiered in Boston, Mass.

1818

– The 1^st time ‘Silent Night’ was sung (Austria)

1776

– George Washington crossed the Delaware River

1492 -

Columbus' ship Santa Maria docked at Dominican Republic

1223 - St. Francis of Assisi assembled 1st Nativity scene (Greccio, Italy)

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From the Choir Loft

"A 1940's Christmas Homecoming"

The Christmas musical from behind the scenes...

It was Sunday night, December 17, 2006. What a great night! We had a packed house...it seemed as though each person we had invited to the performance showed up...it was the best weather we had ever experienced for a Christmas musical...the audience was responsive...the actors were very believable...and the choir was powerful! Everything I wanted for Christmas I received in one night.

The town historian loaned us a black & white video showing our area in the 1940's & 1950's. While we projected that historic video, we played recordings of Christmas tunes played by the Glenn Miller Band.

Many people loaned us uniforms, helmets, posters, pictures, etc. The USO Ambassador from Ft. Drum had sent us USO banners to use and they looked great. I'm sure the audience felt as though they were participating in a WWII USO show.

JoAnn and Pastor Molly did last minute decorating on our "living room" scene and "barracks" scene, while poor Terry was lugging wet pallets up the stairs for our scenery. The army barracks came to life when JoAnn got our local Paper Factory store to enlarge an army barracks picture to 4 feet x 14 feet and applied it to a vinyl canvas.

The biggest victory of the evening came while I was conducting. I fell off the stool and off the podium and ended up vertical. The choir never missed a beat. What a group! For my next act I'm going to fake a serious injury just to see if they'll stop when they see me lying on the floor.

I can't thank Diane enough for all her help!

December 17, 2006

Christmas Tunes

"The Chipmunk Song"

This is a song, which is dusted off every year for the Christmas season. Ross Bagdasarian was a novelty writer in a non-novelty world. Making a living as a quirky songwriter, Ross had one major triumph…he had written the wacky hit, ‘Come Onna my House’ for Rosemary Clooney in 1951. He was later pushed to the other side of the recording booth to the position of recording engineer. Bagdasarian loved the dials, the buttons, the little gauges and lights. He truly got a kick out of playing with the technology of recording. By deliberately recording on the slowest speed possible on his reel-to-reel tape machine, he found he could sing normally, and sound like a freak on helium if he sped-up the recording to normal speed on playback. Using this novelty voice as the background singers for the chorus, he recorded ‘Witchdoctor’ and hit the top of the charts in 1958. With the same recording technique, he created the Chipmunks and their hapless manager, Dave. The character ‘Alvin’ was based on his son who drove him crazy with very complicated questions. The Chipmunk Song, released for the Christmas season of 1958, sold 5 million copies that year and the Chipmunk Song received two Grammy Awards in 1958: "Best Comedy Performance" and "Best Recording for Children."

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

From the Choir Loft

Tonight is the culmination of 6 months of planning and rehearsing. Tonight, our combined choirs and drama members will present the exciting Christmas drama: ‘A 1940’s Christmas Homecoming.’ Over 200 people have helped us in one way or another. The choir members, the drama members, the church secretaries, those who have helped us with the church decoration, construction, logistics, promotion, coaching, accompanists, our families, etc. It would be impossible to thank everyone! Please support our many efforts by attending and invite others to come!

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

History of Christmas Toys

1952

Banking on the idea that children like to play with their food, Hasbro introduced "Mr. Potato Head."

George Lerner of New York City invented and patented Mr. Potato Head based on an earlier toy called "make a face" that used a real potato. A year after his appearance, Mr. Potato Head was introduced to the future "Mrs. Potato Head" and a short time later, were married. "Mr. Potato Head" was the first children’s toy to be advertised on TV.

_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Today in history

(December 17)

1992 – ‘A Christmas Carol’ opened on Broadway (would continue for 22 performances)

1975 – Lynette "Squeaky" Fromme was sentenced to life in prison for attempt on President Ford

1965 – The Houston Astrodome was opened (1^st event was Judy Garland & Supremes in concert)

1962 – The Beatles appeared on TV for the 1^st time in London, England

Church office: (716) 672-2048, Bud: (716) 934-7734, email:

tubamanbud@yahoo.com www.frombudsworld.blogspot.com

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From Bud’s

History of the Carols

December 17, 2006

"Hark! The Herald Angels Sing"

(1856) pg. 240

Words by Charles Wesley (1707 - 1788)

Music by Felix Mendelssohn (1809 - 1847)

The "poet laureate of Methodism," Charles Wesley, the younger brother of John Wesley, who founded Methodism in England, wrote the text for ‘Hark! The Herald Angels Sing’ and published it in his ‘Hymns and Sacred Poems’ of 1739, a volume so popular that it went through five editions. It is said that Wesley wrote this about one year after his conversion. Charles Wesley is credited with authoring 6,500 hymns. These lyrics were originally sung to a different tune than it is today. Many hymns in the eighteenth century consisted merely of printed words without music. It was left to those leading the congregational singing to choose an appropriate tune based on the meter of the verse.

A century later in 1840, Felix Mendelssohn, whose reputation as a musical genius bore no challenge, was asked to compose a "Festgesang," or ceremonial cantata, in honor of Johannes Guttenberg and the 400^th anniversary of the invention of the printing press.

Englishman musician Dr. William H. Cummings adapted Mendelssohn’s music to fit the lyrics of ‘Hark! The Herald Angels Sing.’

Meanwhile…1856…150 years ago…in the United States

…

U. S. President: Franklin Pierce…Vice-President: William King

Woodrow Wilson was born

YMCA opened a branch in New York City

The average American family had 5.4 kids

The main cause of death was: smallpox, typhoid, malaria & "accidents"

Congressman Brooks hit Senator Sumner with his cane on the Senate floor over slavery

Pascal Pratt and Bronson Rumsey founded The M&T Bank in Buffalo, NY

Buffalo, NY had a horse-drawn streetcar named the "omnibus line"

The S. Howes Corporation of Silver Creek, NY was founded

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From the Choir Loft

Sunday night (12/17/06) is the culmination of over 6 months of planning and rehearsing! Our combined choirs and drama group will present the wonderful Christmas musical: 'A 1940's Christmas Homecoming' at Sheridan United Methodist Church (2679 Route 20 in Sheridan, NY). Over 200 people have helped us prepare for this exciting night as we present this Christmas musical arranged in the 'big band' style. We will be opening the church doors at 6:00 pm where the audience will listen to Christmas music played in the big band style while we project old video of our area in the 1940's and 1950's. We thank our local historical society for supplying the video.
The choir/drama members are asked to report to the church at 6:00 pm and you're asked to report to the St. John Bosco church parking lot, where you will be shuttled to our church. Don't forget your dark sunglasses for the "cool" arrangement of 'We Three Kings.'

Merry Christmas...Bud

12/10/06

Christmas Tunes

"Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer"

Ad-man Robert L. May created ‘Rudolph’ in 1939, when he wrote a whimsical little story and circulated it at Christmas time in pamphlet form among the Montgomery Ward mail-order department. Ten years later, composer Johnny Marks composed a musical setting, and ‘Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer’ burst onto the holiday scene in Gene Autry’s hugely successful recording. The whole story of ‘Rudolf’ appeared, out of nowhere, in 1939. The Santas at Montgomery Ward stores gave away 2.4 million copies of the booklet entitled ‘Rudolf the Red-Nose Reindeer.’ A person in the advertising department named Robert May wrote the story, and Denver Gillen illustrated the booklet. Robert May was rather sickly, shy and introverted as a child and he loosely based the Rudolph character on his childhood feelings of alienation from children his own age. The original name of the red-nosed reindeer was to be Rollo, but executives did not like that name, or the other suggested name of Reginald. The name Rudolf came from the author's young daughter!

[As a side note to this story: Robert May’s wife passed away from a long and terminal illness about the same time he created Rudolph. Since he had created Rudolph as a Montgomery Ward employee, the company held the copyright to all royalties received from the story. Deeply in debt from all the medical bills resulting from his wife’s illness, May persuaded Montgomery Ward’s corporate president, Sewell Avery, to turn the copyright over to him in January 1947. With the rights in hand, May’s financial security was assured.]

From the Choir Loft

Our choirs will be presenting the musical drama:

"A 1940’s Christmas Homecoming Sunday (12/10) at 7:00 inside the beautiful First United Church in Silver Creek, NY. (The big white church in the center of Silver Creek) We would like to encourage you to come out and bring a few visitors. This musical is a powerful Christ-centered message presented in the "big band" style of the 1940’s. We guarantee you will be impressed and encouraged…Or your money back! (By the way, we’re only asking for a "free-will" offering!)

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History of Christmas Toys

In 1949, Ole Christiansen, a Danish toy maker, began to manufacture toy blocks with a new twist. Christiansen created a plastic brick that can be locked together in different configurations…The Lego, which comes from the Danish ‘leg godt,’ meaning "play well" was born. The world's children spend 5 billion hours a year playing with LEGO bricks.

The Lego Blocks fit together in 102,981,500 different ways! (For those of us from N.T., that’s almost 103 million!)

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Today in history

(December 10)

1995 – Worst snowstorm in Buffalo history with 37.9" of snow falling in a 24 hour period

1963 – 6 year old Donny Osmond made his singing debut on the Andy Williams TV show

1915 – The ten millionth Model-T Ford was assembled in Detroit, Michigan by Ford Motor

1672 – NY Governor Lovelace announced mail service to begin between NYC & Boston

1520 – Martin Luther publicly burned papal edict

Church office: (716) 672-2048, Bud: (716) 934-7734, email:

tubamanbud@yahoo.com, www.frombudsworld.blogspot.com

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Bud’s

History of the Carols

December 10, 2006

"O Little Town of Bethlehem"

(1868) pg. 230

Words: Phillips Brooks (1835 – 1893) Music: Lewis H. Redner (1830 – 1908)

Three years after his return from a trip to the Holy Land in 1865, Philadelphia preacher Phillips Brooks found himself still deeply moved by Bethlehem’s "simplicity and wondrous beauty." Brooks wrote about his horseback journey from Jerusalem to Bethlehem, where he assisted with the midnight service on Christmas Eve, 1865. "I remember standing in the old church in Bethlehem, close to the spot where Jesus was born, when the whole church was ringing hour after hour with splendid hymns of praise to God. How again and again it seemed as if I could hear voices I knew well, telling each other of the Wonderful Night of the Savior’s birth."

He penned some lines that he thought captured the serene atmosphere of the place where Jesus was born, and asked the organist of his church, Lewis Redner, if he could compose a melody.

Redner was a wealthy real estate broker as well as the church organist at Holy Trinity Church. Redner struggled with his task day after day, until, waking from a nap on the afternoon of Christmas Eve, he seemed to hear "an angel strain" and was finally inspired to jot down a tune that matched Brooks’ verses perfectly.

That was in 1868, but ‘O Little Town of Bethlehem’ did not gain its universal popularity until 1882, when it was published in the new hymnal of the Episcopal Church.

Meanwhile…1868…138 years ago…in the United States…

U. S. President: Andrew Johnson…Vice-President: None

U.S. House of Representatives voted to impeach President Andrew Johnson

Cornell University (Ithaca, NY) was opened

Brigham Young married his 27^th wife

William Hinds received a patent for the "Candlestick"

Frederick Olmsted was hired to design the City of Buffalo’s public parks

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December 3, 2006

Christmas Tunes

‘Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!’

One oppressively hot day in July 1945, Jule Styne and Sammy Cahn were in Los Angeles to talk with their publisher, Edwin H. Morris. Their business finished, Cahn suggested that they go to the beach to cool off. But Styne, always businesslike, thought they ought to work a little first. He suggested that they cool off by writing a winter song. Cahn finally agreed and dashed off the beginnings of a lyric; Styne responded with the beginnings of a tune. Before long, ‘Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow’ was finished. Vaughn Monroe’s recording shot to the top of the pop charts during Christmas of 1945.

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The Christmas season From the choir loft

As Christian musicians, our sole focus must be to worship God in our music. God created us for fellowship and with fellowship comes communication. We communicate our thoughts and feelings through our songs. In the Bible, from the time of Moses up until the present time, God has blessed us with powerful sacred music to worship Him. All our musical efforts during this blessed Christmas season are to lift our music in worship to Him. We only hope to honor Him for who He is!

"He is the reason for the Season!"

You know the Christmas musical is less than a week away. (First United Church in Silver Creek, NY on Sunday 12/10, and Sheridan United Methodist Church on Sunday 12/17.) Both dress rehearsals are on Sunday 12/3...we need everyone! The choir will rehearse on Tuesday 12/5 and Tuesday 12/12! Please make every effort to attend all rehearsals and concerts! We need everyone!

Don't forget that we are "Christmas Caroling" on Tuesday, 12/19. If you are singing inside St. Columban's On The Lake, please report to St. Columban's at 6:15 PM. If you are going out to sing to the "shut-ins," please report to Sheridan United Methodist Church at 6:00 PM. We will have music books. We are inviting everyone to sing with us! Not talent necessary. Just a willingness to bless others during this wonderful time of the year.

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History of Christmas Toys

Crayola Crayons

In the early 1900s, Binney & Smith, a chemical company, began to produce slate pencils and a type of dustless chalk. Company executives, and cousins, Edwin Binney and C. Harold Smith realized that a new wax crayon they had developed to mark crates and boxes in their factory would provide a neater and more affordable alternative to costly imported crayons for American schools. Edwin Binney’s wife, Alice, picked Crayola as the brand name. In 1903, an assortment of affordable, multi-colored crayons was offered to the American public for the first time. The first Crayola crayons came in a box of eight and retailed for a nickel. The eight original colors were black, blue, brown, green, orange, red, violet, and yellow. In the company's 102-year history, over one hundred billion Crayola crayons have been produced. Binney & Smith produce nearly three billion crayons each year—that's about seven million every day. That much paraffin wax and colored pigment is enough to make a crayon thirty-seven feet wide and four hundred and twenty feet long, higher than the Statue of Liberty! Crayola crayons are sold in more than eighty countries and packaged in twelve languages. The average American child uses 730 crayons by his/her tenth birthday. Children ages two through eight spend an average of twenty-eight minutes a day coloring. That equals

6.3 billion hours spent coloring annually! The scent of Crayola crayons is among the twenty most recognizable scents to American adults.

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Today in history

(December 3)

1979 – The last Pacer automobile was manufactured

1950 – Paul Harvey began his national radio broadcast career

1947 – "A Streetcar Named Desire" opened on Broadway

1931 – Alka Seltzer was sold for the first time

Church office: (716) 672-2048, Bud: (716) 934-7734, email:

tubamanbud@yahoo.com

Visit "Bud's Blog" at www.frombudsworld.blogspot.com

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From Bud’s

History of the Carols

December 3, 2006

"Angels We Have Heard on High"

(1937) pg. 238

Words: Traditional French Carol (1862)

Music: Arranged by Edward Shippen Barnes (1881 - 1958)

According to the story of the first Christmas, it was the shepherds tending their flocks near Bethlehem to whom the angels first gave the news of the baby Jesus’ birth. And so, in medieval times shepherds who found themselves minding their little herds in the wintry mountains of southern France on Christmas Eve remembered the story of that first birth and the angels who sang of it.

They called one to the other, each from his own peak, singing the good news as the angels had sung so long ago, until finally the mountaintops themselves rang with a glorious patchwork of echoing voices.

In this favorite carol, the music probably comes from a 17^th or 18^th century French carol, as does the text. But the back-and-forth "Gloria" refrain is probably based on a much older phrase of music, perhaps a bit of plainsong chant from the Church’s earlier days. The back and forth "gloria’s" in the chorus mimic the echo sound of the shepherds’ voices as they sang from the mountaintops. The combination of tune and text was not published, so far as we know, until it appeared in a carol collection in 1855.

Meanwhile…1937…69 years ago…in the United States…

U. S. President: Franklin D. Roosevelt…Vice-President: John Garner

Average prices

: Bread: 9 cents/loaf, Milk: 12 cents/qt.,

Car: $675, Gas: 20 cents/gal., Stamp: 3 cents

Best Actor

: Spencer Tracy…Favorite songs: ‘The Dipsy Doodle’ by Tommy Dorsey’… ‘The Moon Got in my Eyes’ by Bing Crosby…’Boo Hoo’ by Guy Lombardo

The Hindenburg burst into flames while landing in Lakehurst, NJ

Walt Disney’s ‘Snow White & the 7 Dwarfs’ movie was released

Amelia Earhart disappeared on her ‘around the world’ flight attempt

Rev. James W. Reis was pastor of Sheridan Methodist Church

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