Home for the Holidays Concert Video

I'm so glad that we were able to obtain a recording of this performance. It was a really special experience for the kids. The Home for the Holidays show is put on annually by local musician Mark Bosnian, who, upon hearing about Shine in September (when we were just getting started) invited us to be beneficiaries of the concert AND to perform at it! A performance opportunity AND a donation-- what more could a fledgling chorus ask for? We were thrilled!

The night of the concert, we arrived for our sound check and found that not only was Mark Bosnian just as kind a person as his generosity would suggest, but he was also amazingly calm while pulling together all the last minute details for a major event with lots of people involved. I think his calmness helped put the kids at ease, and reminded all of us that we were gathering to share music and joy, and to relax and let it be fun.

And so much fun it was! We sang our mash-up of Israel Kamakawiwo'ole's Somewhere Over the Rainbow and I'm Yours by Jason Mraz, and our soloist JinMei really knocked it out of the park! We also did Waka Waka (This Time for Africa) by Shakira. The audience was wonderful, the atmosphere was warm and inviting, and the kids REALLY connected. Afterward, there was lots of praise for Shine and how expressively the kids sang, how they really seemed to be getting into the music and enjoying themselves, and how nice they sounded. The rest of the night was filled with beautiful music by different groups and individual performers (including the multi-talented Mark Bosnian himself), and it was a pleasure and an honor to be a part of it.

Watch Shine's performance below!