Back in the ‘70’s, Chip Davis was a classically-trained musician working in the advertising world. In his spare time, he was busy inventing a new style of music. When approached, the big record labels were intrigued, but confused by this new style: it wasn’t exactly jazz, it wasn’t really rock, and it wasn’t precisely classical. So, in 1975 Chip founded his own company, and American Gramaphone quickly grew to be the largest independent record label in the country. In order to increase exposure to his music, Chip started a new band he called Mannheim Steamroller and started touring the world.
Fast forward 30 years, and you’ll find the same dynamics at work at American Gramaphone. Today, Mannheim Steamroller is a group of the most talented and versatile musicians, still touring the world. The band is an ever-changing consortium of musicians, technicians and engineers using state-of-the-art equipment to create Mannheim Steamroller’s signature sound. The group can vary in size from one player, to a small ensemble, to an entire symphony.
Mannheim Steamroller is one of the top selling bands of all time, outselling such artists as Billy Joel, Michael Jackson, Sting and Bruce Springsteen.
Chip Davis: Creator, Arranger, Producer
Chip Davis is the genius behind Mannheim Steamroller and the driving force of American Gramaphone. His now-classic Fresh Ai
re series and the multi-platinum Christmas albums have brought him international renown.
Chip combines the dynamics of musical mastery and technical wizardry to create a style often described as “18th Century Rock-n-Roll.” He named the band Mannheim Steamroller for the 18th century musical technique that we know today as the crescendo.
For the first time in the band's history, Chip is not on stage with his celebrated band of merry-makers. Instead he is home recovering from surgery (he calls it a "real drummer bummer"). However, rather than leave Mannheim Steamroller home for the holidays, Chip decided it was time to reinvent the way the band tours. Chip created two traveling troupes, assigned some original band members to each and hand selected several terrific young musicians to join Mannheim Steamroller. Between the two bands, Mannheim Steamroller will entertain in more than 60 cities and towns this season.
Tonight’s concert is a celebration of 25 remarkable years of groundbreaking Christmas music. Just out for this holiday season is Chip’s new album Christmasville—featuring the music of that grouchy yet lovable character, The Grinch. Chip’s 2007 release, Christmas Song, earned platinum status within two weeks of its release.
From his unlikely base of operations in Omaha, Nebraska, Chip has sold nearly 30 million records and produced hundreds of Mannheim Steamroller concerts around the world. The Grammy Award winner lives on a farm with his wife Trisha and three children
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