BUTLER TWP — Nothing sets the holiday mood more than music, and the Butler County Symphony Orchestra certainly created a festive mood with holiday favorites on Saturday evening. The near capacity audience at Butler Intermediate High School enjoyed holiday music from the classics to film soundtracks.

The orchestra opened with Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov’s “Polonaise from Christmas Eve.” Conductor Matthew Kraemer led the musicians between the majestic and lyrical sections of this Romantic piece with an energy and precision that continued throughout the entire concert.

Bruce Chase’s Christmas favorites followed, smoothly blending “Pine Cones and Holly,” “Silver Bells” and the “Christmas Song.”

Soprano soloist Kate Amatuzzo from Erie showed her versatility in three selections, beginning with “Christmas Eve in My Hometown” made famous by Kate Smith. The swing arrangement with Timothy Nwranski playing trap drums suited her clear, bright voice.

Perhaps the best selection of the evening was Ralph Vaughan Williams’ hauntingly beautiful “Fantasia on Greensleeves.” Of all the variations on a melody most would know as “What Child Is This?” the delicate nuances of the flute (Patricia Zawadski) and harp (Julia Scott) were exceptional.

The only faux pas of the evening had nothing to do with musical performance. Between the sections of Samuel Alder’s “Feast of Lights” for Hanukkah, several chorus members entered the risers too soon. No doubt embarrassed, they stayed put while the orchestra continued and the audience didn’t seem to notice.

The 80 member combined Butler High School choruses under the direction of Bryan Helsel (also the symphony pianist) ably sang John Rutter’s “Go Tell it on the Mountain.” Their crisp diction carried easily over the orchestra.

The chorus then joined Amatuzzo for “O Holy Night,” which let the audience hear her more operatic vocal talent.

The second half featured selections composed for holiday movies, music often missed when watching the films, especially Dimitri Tiomkin’s “It’s a Wonderful Life” title song that few would readily know. Conductor Kraemer told the audience it would be on TV when they got home. Amatuzzo and the choruses brought it to life while the orchestra captured the sweeping qualities of film scores.

With Bob Krogstad’s Christmas at the Movies medley the orchestra expressed exuberant and suspenseful moments from 1990s’ movies such as “Polar Express” and “The Nightmare before Christmas.”

The choruses illustrated both the sweet melody of “Somewhere in My Memory” and the rousing “Merry Christmas” from John Williams’ “Home Alone” scores. The symphony brass section aptly brought out the signature feature of Williams’ compositions.

“White Christmas,” introduced by Bing Crosby in 1944’s Holiday Inn may be the most famous of all cinema songs. Amatuzzo began with the usually omitted verse of, “longing to be up North,” and the John Moss arrangement complemented the vocalist and musicians.

The audience joined in with the annual sing-along led by Amatuzzo to end the concert.

Kraemer began the encore of Leroy Anderson’s “Sleigh Ride” before the applause ended. Although half the audience was already on its way to the cookie reception, the symphony played the perennial favorite enthusiastically.

Earlier in the concert, Kraemer said a holiday concert expresses the best of a community. The Butler County Symphony certainly gave the community the best of holiday gifts, the music of the season.