Behind the Scenes of “Chatham Holidays”
From the Archives to your iPhone, from 1952 to 2019, the song featured in our most recent holiday video had quite the journey. Get a peek behind the scenes as we explore the history, mystery, and magic of our final celebration of Chatham’s 150th Anniversary year.
From left to right, videographer Jordan Kepner and Music majors Katie Hetz, Nicholas Graef, and Kaitlyn Salmon recording “Chatham Holidays” in the Founder’s Room of Laughlin Music Hall.
Discovering “Chatham Christmas”
By Sarah Hamm
associate director, Brand and COntent Strategy
During preparations for Chatham’s Long Purple Line Gala during 150th Reunion weekend, our Marketing and Communications Department worked closely with Chatham University Archives and Special Collections Archivist Molly Tighe to source and display materials from the many eras of Chatham’s past. While exploring the archives, Molly and I came across sheet music for a song entitled “Chatham Christmas.” Covering three pages, the lyrics to the song were timeless— the images of snow blanketing our campus or candlelight flickering in the Chapel— but also evocative of their time (we don’t hear many taffetas rustling nowadays!).
Chatham Christmas:
Snow falling down on the campus below
Chimes faintly ringing thru’ soft drifting snow
It’s Christmas time, Christmas time.
Jingle bells playing on glasses at night
Taffetas rusting in shimmering light
Chapel bells call us to come at midnight
To worship together in soft candle lite.
Dinner, the dance, and the crowning of queens
Parties and presents, holly and greens
Christmas trees, carols and chimes ringing too.
It’s Christmas time Chatham for you.
I was immediately entranced, and wanted to feature the song for our holiday card during our sesquicentennial year. But first, I had to know more about it. As you can see to the right, there’s a small assignation of “Class of 1952” on the music, but otherwise, Molly and I were stumped as to the story behind the song. Was it written by the Class of 1952 as part of the beloved tradition of Song Contest? Maybe it was performed at Candlelight in 1952?
After searching the Archives, combing newspaper clippings and digitized yearbooks, we came no closer to discovering it’s provenance. The mystery of it made it all the more intriguing (that and the fact that I don’t read music!), so I enlisted Music major Katherine “Katie” Hetz to help. Katie sight-read the piece for me one morning in the Welker Room of Laughlin Music Hall, and as we heard the first few bars play, possibly for the first time in over 50 years, we both knew the song was something special.
Creating “Chatham Holidays”
For the song to be a viable representation not only of Chatham’s past but also of its present, a few updates had to be made. It was very important to me that any holiday song we presented was as inclusive as possible, echoing the diversity of beliefs and celebrations of our Chatham community. The sentiments expressed in the 2019 lyrics— written by myself and Writer & Digital Content Specialist Chloe Bell— are not replacements but rather extensions of the original’s. We don’t crown queens any more as part of our holiday festivities, but we do celebrate our students and the end of the term at Holiday Ball. We may not all worship in the Chapel at midnight, but we gather together during Candlelight, finding comfort and community in each other’s good cheer. Plus, the updates gave an opportunity to incorporate other Chatham winter traditions, like seeing Mellon decked out in decorations, or sledding down Chapel Hill!
Chatham Holidays:
Snow falling down on the campus below
Chimes faintly ringing thru’ soft drifting snow
Holiday time, holiday time.
Chapel Hill sledding if it snows just right
Garlands in Mellon all shimmering bright
Jingle bells call us on this winter’s night
To gather together in soft candle light
Eggnog and dancing at Holiday Ball,
Parties and presents, good cheer for us all,
Evergreens, carols and merriment too...
It’s holiday Chatham for you.
Making It all COme Together
With new lyrics ready and Katie at the piano, music students Kaitlyn Salmon and Nicholas Graef rounded out the “Chatham Holidays” crew. Working with this group of students was a joy; they volunteered their time and talents during exam week and performed unflaggingly through many takes. Collaborating with this fun, cooperative, and utterly original trio made me feel connected to the original composers, even if their names are unknown— a group of young women undoubtedly as fun-loving and creative as present-day students, with equal school spirit and maybe even a touch of mischief in their lyrics? Why else as Pennsylvania College for Women students would they title their song “Chatham Christmas” in 1952, when we didn’t become Chatham College until 1955? Perhaps these young women were agitating for change and progress in the same spirit that students do now.
As we filmed in the Founder’s Room of Laughlin Music Hall, we realized an even deeper connection to our earliest history as an institution: On either side of the piano stands two doors, delicately arched in neo-Gothic style. They are the doors to the original Berry Hall, Pennsylvania Female College’s first building that would house students from our first class in 1870 until its deconstruction in 1953. The four eras of Chatham— Pennsylvania Female College, Pennsylvania College for Women, Chatham College, and Chatham University— together in one room on our 150th year.
