Manheim steam roller series#

Upon graduating in 1969, Davis was tapped to tour with the Norman Luboff Choir after five years with the group, performing everything from pop to classical, he returned to Sylvania to teach music at the local junior high school, often adapting classical standards to contemporary harmonies and rhythms for student consumption.ĭavis later left teaching, arranging and conducting an Omaha, Nebraska production of Hair before accepting a job writing advertising jingles. He later joined a boys' choir, and while attending the University of Michigan, played bassoon in the school's concert band. His grandmother was his first music teacher, giving the child his initial piano lessons at the age of four two years later, Davis composed his first piece, a four-part chorale written in honor of his dog.

Manheim steam roller series#

In addition to the Fresh Aire and Christmas series are albums devoted to the natural world and even a set of Halloween collections.īorn in Sylvania, Ohio, Davis' father was a high school music teacher, while his mother was a trombonist with Phil Spitalny's All Girl Orchestra.

1984's massively popular Mannheim Steamroller Christmas was the release that broke Davis' project into the mainstream and subsequent holiday-themed releases and annual tours ensured that Mannheim Steamroller would remain a perennial Yuletide staple well into the 21st century. After his independently released 1974 debut Fresh Aire became a hit in the audiophile world, Davis spent the next decade expanding his brand. The alias of composer Chip Davis, Mannheim Steamroller was among the pioneers of neo-classical electronic music, emerging as one of the driving forces behind the new age phenomenon.