I reveal my vintage a little too clearly if I share the songs that rallied us to the dance-floor no matter what time of night nor what degree of inebriation, during my first season in Whistler. But after a year of working with Whistler talents Grant Stoddard, Leslie Anthony and GD Maxwell to develop SNOW: the Whistler musical, I put it out there, that there are a couple of new anthems up for grabs, set to pack dancefloors throughout the resort. (Mr Draper, my grade 4 recorder teacher, will be reassured : I had nothing to do with the music. Any props I can claim are purely by association.)

Posted at Whistler’s Cultural Capitals website are 13 original tunes composed by Grant Stoddard and Leslie Anthony in a frenzy of creative productivity this past year, and professionally recorded last week in preparation for the musical’s  first public airing.  (A workshop performance with a professional cast will be held at MY Millennium Place on Saturday December 19, 2009, at 7pm.)

While the creative team drew as much inspiration from AC/DC, the Rocky Horror Picture Show, John Syms’ and Colby James West’s My Friend is a Pro and Steve Casimiro on the Ski Bum as Zen Master as from Rogers and Hammerstein or Andrew Lloyd Webber in our attempt to capture Whistler in a way that would not just ring true to locals, but would lob highly contagious musical memes into the minds of people around the world, I have to throw down for my personal favourites…  Touch, Up to Here, and (naturally) Aussie Day. Cos’ really, I do think that one-night stands, reggae snow-summonsing and Oz Day shenanigans are quintessentially Whistler.

Of course, there are those who will argue that there is nothing more quintessential to Whistler than Rob Boyd…  But invoking a new community anthem should never happen by decree. It’s a matter for debate. Argue away.