BSR Holiday Classical Interludes, December 2024

Tempesta di Mare: Neapolitan Christmas
Friday, December 13, 7pm
Christ Church Christiana Hundred, 505 Buck Road, Wilmington

Saturday, December 14, 7:30pm
Trinity at 22nd, 2212 Spruce Street, Philadelphia

Sunday, December 15
Presbyterian Church of Chestnut Hill, 8885 Germantown Avenue, Philadelphia

This concert—billed as “fun from Naples”—features Tempesta’s Chamber Players and soprano Rebecca Myers in works by baroque masters. The ensemble will play seasonal music by Falconieri and Mancini, along with Domenico Scarlatti’s Concerto à 4 and his festive Christmas cantata O di Bethlemme! And their recording of orchestral works (a modern premiere) by Johann Friedrich Fasch has just been released. It was recorded during the 2023 International Fasch Festival at the Castle of Zerbst, the German town where Fasch lived and worked.

OperaDelaware at Winterthur: Holiday Candlelight Concert
Saturday, December 14, 6pm
Winterthur, 5105 Kennett Pike (Route 52), Wilmington

For the second year, OperaDelaware singers will perform in the candlelit Copeland Lecture Hall at Winterthur Museum, House & Gardens. Pianist George Hemcher will be joined by baritone Brian James Myer and two of OperaDelaware’s newly named company artists—singers who will both perform and join the administration staff—Toni Marie Palmertree (soprano) and Dane Suarez (tenor). The ensemble will perform holiday classics and opera highlights.

Vox Amadeus Consort: Renaissance Noel
Saturday, December 14, 8pm
Church of St. Martin in the Fields, 8000 St. Martin’s Lane, Philadelphia

Sunday, December 15, 4pm
Church of the Good Samaritan, 212 West Lancaster Avenue, Paoli

This is the 38th consecutive year for these highly anticipated annual concerts presented by the Vox Renaissance Consort. The performance features two dozen works of Renaissance European Christmas music for single and double chorus, solo voices, and period instruments, with performers attired in period costumes. Highlights include works by Praetorius, Gabrieli, and Sweelinck, among many others, and the concert runs 90 minutes without intermission.

Philadelphia Orchestra: The Glorious Sound of Christmas
Saturday, December 14, 7pm
Sunday, December 15, 2pm
Kimmel Center, Marian Anderson Hall, 300 South Broad Street, Philadelphia

This annual event has been part of Philadelphia’s holiday offerings since it was begun in 1962 under the baton of Eugene Ormandy. This year, frequent guest conductor William Eddins is joined by baritone Benjamin Taylor, narrator Charlotte Blake Alston, and the Mendelssohn Chorus. The concert features favorite sing-along carols and holiday works like Vaughan Williams’ Fantasia on Christmas Carols and Leroy Anderson’s Sleigh Ride, as well as the first orchestral performance of A Home is Found at Christmas by Dominick DiOrio, the Mendelssohn Chorus artistic director.

Tuba Christmas!
Sunday, December 15, 2-3pm
Cherry Street Pier, 121 North Columbus Boulevard, Philadelphia

This festive—and unusual—holiday celebration has been going on worldwide for 51 years. You can hear the Philadelphia version on Sunday afternoon, under the direction of Jay Krush. If you’re a tuba or euphonium player, it looks as though there’s still time to sign up, and instructions are at the link above. But audience members don’t need a reservation for the free event. The Cherry Street Pier is covered but not heated, so if the weather outside is frightful, you’ll want to dress accordingly.

The Crossing at Christmas: What Remains When We Are Gone?
Friday, December 20, 7pm
Saint Mark’s Church, 1625 Locust Street, Philadelphia

Sunday, December 22, 5pm
Presbyterian Church of Chestnut Hill, 8885 Germantown Avenue, Philadelphia

This is the third season for The Crossing’s presentation of David Lang’s poor hymnal, which takes a completely different look at Christmas carols and hymns. Lang (a founder of the Bang on a Can collective) writes powerfully for this Grammy-winning ensemble, and a recording of this commissioned work—The Crossing’s 36th album—is scheduled to be released on December 13. On December 21, in between their two Philadelphia performances, the ensemble will sing this concert at New York’s Alice Tully Hall in Lincoln Center.

Piffaro, The Renaissance Band: Nova! Nova!
Friday, December 20, 7:30pm
Church of the Holy Trinity, Rittenhouse Square, Philadelphia

Saturday, December 21, 7:30pm
Presbyterian Church of Chestnut Hill, 8885 Germantown Avenue, Philadelphia

Sunday, December 22, 3pm
Westminster Presbyterian Church, 1502 West 13th Street, Wilmington

For this concert presented just on the cusp of Christmas, a guest ensemble joins Piffaro—the twice Grammy-nominated male vocal ensemble New York Polyphony. The concert of (mostly) English medieval music for the season features polyphony from the Eton Choirbook. Rooted in England’s earliest Christmas traditions, the concert also includes 15th century carols, music from the 12th and 13th centuries, and well-known carols, and two new pieces written for New York Polyphony by contemporary composer Andrew Smith. The concert is also available to stream from January 3-16.