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'A Championship Season' with the Philadelphia Orchestra at the Mann Center


The Philadelphia Eagles have a Pep Band, a drum line and for a few hours recently Eagles Nation had an official band - an orchestra, in fact. The world renown Philadelphia Orchestra performed at the Mann Center for the Performing Arts for the NFL Films presentation of “A Championship Season.” Eagle fans from all around the Delaware Valley flocked to the venue to continue the celebration of the first Super Bowl win (a celebration that in some ways may never end).

The Venue

The echoes of E-A-G-L-E-S - some joining late - others out of rhythm, as some always are - just made you feel like you were actually at Lincoln Financial Field awaiting kick-off. The tone was set early on as some rainy weather (no problem for die-hard Eagles fans) wet the freshly cut grass of the lawn area. Inside the covered shell of the Mann Music Center - more comfortable but still very humid because of the rain - the fans were abuzz chants, cheers and murmurs about what they were going to see.

The Fans

All the Eagles fan accessories were there on display: jerseys, hats, lawn chairs and sunglasses. For every new Super Bowl Foles jersey, there was a well-stressed Cunningham or Westbrook jersey. All worn with pride, all Eagle disappointments forgotten, all past broken hearts mended. As always, with every historic sports victory, the creative T-shirt business reaches new heights.

The Music - The Suites

Conductor Aram Demirjian confidently walked out onto the stage and introduced our host for the evening, the radio voice of the Eagles Mr. Merrill Reece. After a few remarks about how special the season was to him - to all of us. He was followed shortly by Eagles owner Jeffrey Laurie (and then ‘Tom Brady owner’ Brandon Graham) carrying the prized trophy elusive to the city for so many years.

The music for NFL Films has always been iconic to the sport, valuable in its storytelling, and beautifully composed. Classic songs were there such as: Classic Battle, Up She Rises and FInal Quest as well as a relatively new song - never heard before in Philadelphia - The Lombardi Trophy Theme.

Matching the songs on a 40-foot screen on stage (as well as two screens for the lawn section) were ‘video suites’ - each with a theme, each with a story paired perfectly with the music. There was a video celebrating the cherished history of the NFL, the celebration of past Eagles teams and the importance of the fan base. Highlights or at least glimpses of past Eagle greats were there. All with their counterparts, shown roughly in chronological order. VanBrocklin, McDonald, Retzlaff. Jawaorksi, Montgomery, Carmichael. Cunningham, Quick, White. McNabb, Westbrook, Dawkins. And the newly etched in stone: Foles, Clement, Burton.

The Music - The Season

To say the music was played perfectly is stating the obvious. But the experience that was created was different for everybody. This was more than a football game. This was remembering family members who had passed away. This was forgiving every dropped pass and botched kick-off. This was in some ways as fun as the Super Bowl. This was a city’s religion put to music - this was mass.

The Orchestra

The 90-piece orchestra has been a Philadelphia treasure for years but has been flexing its cultural muscle every summer. Jason Kelce, a center for the Eagles who sported the now famous Mummers costume at the parade, even joined the orchestra with his saxophone for a song.








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