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<\/a>\u201cWhen I was younger I thought I\u2019d live in one of the major cities of the world so I could follow my music career,\u201d says Lapp. \u201cI had a moment at the end of a tour with Rickie Lee Jones and my bandmates and I were all at Heathrow Airport flying home to our respective cities, which were Los Angeles, Paris, New York, and I was flying home to Victoria. It dawned on me that those were the cities I\u2019d always dreamed I\u2019d be living in but I was really excited to be flying home to Victoria.\u201d<\/p>\n
Lapp remembers coming to a realization on that flight that everything he needed was right here in BC.<\/p>\n
\u201cBC is my home\u2014born and raised,\u201d says Lapp. \u201cI love getting on a plane and touring but I really appreciate the connections I\u2019ve made in Victoria over 30 years of teaching, and I put a lot of value on those relationships.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Home for Christmas series is different for Lapp, because he acts as curator for the concerts.<\/p>\n
\u201cI get to feature a lot of my favourite musicians in town and showcase my hard-working and passionate students,\u201d says Lapp. \u201cBeing the musical director of the show, I\u2019m playing all the time, but it\u2019s not my feature, it\u2019s my chance to put a spotlight on artists that I love to work with.\u201d<\/p>\n
The show is unique, Lapp says, because of the wide representation in ages and musical styles, and the blend of professional and amateur musicians.<\/p>\n
\u201cOur students just light right up when they have the opportunity to play with professional musicians,\u201d says Lapp. \u201cFor professionals, it kind of puts us in touch with why we started playing music in the first place. Seeing the excitement of a child on stage is a great reminder for those of us who make our living doing this.\u201d<\/p>\n
This is the first live Home For Christmas concert in three years. Lapp says they kept the series going through COVID measures but they\u2019re making real progress this year by bringing the audience back to Alix Goolden Hall.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn other words, back in 2020 we couldn\u2019t even be in the same room so we had to put an online show together small pieces at a time,\u201d says Lapp. \u201c2021 was quite fun because 100-plus performers were able to be in Alix Goolden Hall performing, but we couldn\u2019t have a live audience. We felt progress but this year\u2014we can finally bring all of the performers together in a full house. We\u2019re very excited.\u201d<\/p>\n
Lapp says a roster of local professional musicians will play in the Swinging Shepherd\u2019s House Band, the Shiny H\u2019Ornaments, and the Strings of Lights. They\u2019ll be joined by the Joy of Life Choir, Folkestra!, and the BC Fiddle Orchestra, special guest Andrea Menard, and, this year, audiences will be treated to some BC Fiddle Orchestra alumni coming back. The spirit of the season is alive and well at these shows, Lapp says.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe anticipation of Christmas Day is very much in the air,\u201d he says. \u201cThat\u2019s why I called it ‘Home For Christmas’\u2014that opportunity for families to get together that only get to do this maybe once or twice a year.\u201d<\/p>\n