Frosty and Frozen

Frosty and Frozen
Colorado Symphony
Boettcher Concert Hall
Denver, CO
December 21, 2016

The Colorado Symphony has a wide variety of holiday concerts offered every December. Frosty and Frozen is a new show aimed towards children and families. The concert consisted of traditional holiday songs, a carol sing along, selections from Disney’s Frozen and a few well-selected classical pieces. The result was one of the most enjoyable concerts I have ever attended at Boettcher Concert Hall.

The concert began with Sleigh Ride, a festive piece that set the tone of the show.  The classical pieces included were well chosen. The selections from The Nutcracker were among the most familiar music and were well received. And while “winter” from Vivaldi’s Four Seasons might seem a bit difficult for children to sit through, the solo violinist, Yi Zhao, dazzled the audience and made what could have been a stuffy portion seem magical.

The concert also featured soloist Nadya Hill. Her initial appearance was for “Do You Want to Build a Snowman” from Disney’s Frozen. While she looked the part in her navy dress with a burgundy wrap, much which evoked Anna’s costume from the film, the performance wasn’t as impressive. Partway through the song, she forgot the lyrics. On the bright side, the children in the audience filled in for her nicely.

Hill later sang “Let It Go” where she tweaked the lyrics a bit. (With a song this epic, those changes are glaring.) She sang it well, but the emotion of the performance seemed lacking. She later led a sing along of songs. Some of the choices were less than familiar like “Toyland” and “All I Want For Christmas Is My Two Front Teeth.” Fortunately, the lyrics were in the program.

The difficulties of the soloist aside, the concert was fun and charming. It was a prefect blend of popular music and classical pieces. The audience participation was well-suited for the audience. While it was not a perfect show, I hope the symphony tries this one again!