CSO 2025-2026 Season
THE ORCHESTRAL KALEIDOSCOPE
Concert III: The Annual Poinsettia Pops
featuring soloist Jeanine Ouderkirk
SATURDAY, DECEMBER 13, 2025 - DOORS AT 6:30, CONCERT AT 7:30
SUNY ONEONTA’S GOODRICH THEATER (IN THE FINE ARTS COMPLEX ACROSS FROM THE ALUMNI FIELD HOUSE)
Glen Cortese, Artistic Director, Catskill Symphony Orchestra
Help us decorate the Poinsettia Pops stage!
Buy a 10” poinsettia plant (5-6 blooms) when you purchase your ticket and pick it up at the end of the concert!
Tickets $25 and Plants $15. All proceeds go to the CSO.
About the Annual Poinsettia Pops Concert
Photo: The December 2024 CSO Poinsettia Pops concert at Foothills Performing Arts and Civic Center in Oneonta, NY
A Catskill Symphony Orchestra holiday tradition, the Poinsettia Pops is returning to Oneonta for the 2025-2026 season! The Pops brings the community together for an evening of light and joy through beloved holiday classics in the poinsettia-adorned Goodrich Theater in SUNY Oneonta’s Fine Arts complex.
Originally introduced to the Catskill Symphony Orchestra through the arrival of Artistic Director Glen Cortese, the Poinsettia Pops is a special concert hosted in only a few locations around the United States—including Saratoga Springs, NY, and Greeley, Colorado.
This year, the Catskill Symphony Orchestra is delighted to welcome the addition of jazz vocalist Jeanine Ouderkirk to the Pops—contributing a new dimension and warmth to our holiday favorites!
Support the Pops through your advance purchase of a poinsettia plant on stage—and take it home afterwards! Plants are only $15 and may be purchased individually or with tickets. (Poinsettias are great for holiday decorating, adding color to the office, church contributions, or gifts to friends!)
Program: Poinsettia Pops 2025
Jeanine Ouderkirk, Vocalist
Glen Cortese, Conductor
Christmas Festival Overture, arr. Leroy Anderson
Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas, Hugh Martin and Ralph Blane, arr. Colbie Caillat
God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen, Traditional Carol, arr. Glen Cortese
Let it Snow, Sammy Cahn, Jule Styne, arr. Charles Sayre
Corpus Christi Carol, Traditional English Carol, arr. Glen Cortese
Selections from The Nutcracker Ballet (Dance of the Merlitons, Tea, Coffee, Trepak), Pytor Ilyich Tchaikovsky
INTERMISSION
Infant Holy, Infant Lowly, Traditional Polish Carol, arr. Glen Cortese
Stille Nacht (“Silent Night”), Xaver Gruber, arr. Chip Davis and Calvin Custer
The Nightmare Before Christmas Suite, Danny Elfman, arr. Glen Cortese
White Christmas, Irving Berlin, arr. John Moss
Sleigh Ride, Leroy Anderson
The Christmas Song, Mel Torme and Bob Wells, arr. Glen Cortese
Hark the Herald Angels Sing, Traditional Carol, arr. Glen Cortese
About Jeanine Ouderkirk
Jeanine Ouderkirk is a jazz vocalist and multi-instrumentalist hailing from Saratoga Springs, NY. A “late-in-life” singer, Ouderkirk cut her teeth in New York’s Capital District music scene after a decade of devoting her time to studying and performing on the Bass Clarinet and Bari Sax in Classical and Jazz settings concluding with a Master's in Music Education at the Crane School of Music. One teacher in particular, Bobby McFerrin, inspired and invited the young singer to improvise more from the blank canvas of ‘now’, allowing the ‘next note’ to be decided only in the moment.
A Pop and Rock enthusiast, she explores the music of the 1970’s ‘til now, accompanying her voice on the Piano and Guitar. Ouderkirk has also been the featured soloist with Schenectady-Saratoga Symphony Orchestra for their annual Poinsettia Pops performance since 2021 and is overjoyed to be bringing her Voice to the Catskill Symphony this year!
Jeanine released her debut album in June 2025, titled "Nightingale," featuring the Piano prowess of NYC Pianist Tedd Firth. The collection of thirteen standards, some obscure, is available in all forms and streaming platforms. Aside from performing, Jeanine joyfully spends her time as a music educator at Saint Gregory’s School in Loudonville, NY.
More information can be found at: www.jeaninemariemusic.com