The public is invited to enjoy some rich sounds-of-the-season at the annual Tuba Christmas concert.

This free concert will feature the Astoria Tuba Quartet, who will perform a variety of seasonal selections, jazz arrangements and a polka or two at this family-friendly event. The quartet will be introduced with a reading by Lynette McAdams of “A Coastal Christmas”.

ATQ was formed in 1980 and its current members have performed together since 1997. Original member Dennis Hale plays F tuba, Bob Joiner and Brian Bergman play euphoniums, and Lee Stromquist plays double bass F tuba. Stromquist also arranges numerous selections for the group.

The tuba’s versatility allows ATQ to perform traditional Christmas selections like “Sleigh Ride,” jazz selections by noted composer/arrangers Lenny Niehaus and Bill Holman, the much-loved Evergreen Polka, and, as arranged by Lee Stromquist, ATQ’s version of the “Dance of the Reed Flutes” (from the Nutcracker Suite), playfully entitled “Dance of the Rude Brass.”

The 2019 Tuba Christmas concert is sponsored by the Ilwaco Merchants Association.