Good morning!
This weekend, I was on a video call with my family, who asked, "What time does the sun set today?"
"Probably 4:30," I said, and then checked my weather app, only to discover that the sun would actually set at 4:12pm. This is the part of winter I like the least — each day a little darker than the one that came before. It's no wonder, then, that so many of our winter holidays are celebrations of light. It's even less of a wonder that those celebrations, lit by flickering candles or brightly-colored bulbs, are also times of gathering and community, and most importantly for this newsletter, of song.
So many of my glowing holiday memories center around music: caroling parties, with friends and family crowded around a piano; outings to the Holiday Pops, or to A Christmas Celtic Sojourn; evenings curled up at home with a good book and a mug of something warm, a Nat King Cole CD playing in the other room. In these dark and cold midwinter days, music keeps us warm — or, at risk of sounding corny as all get-out, at least it warms our hearts.
With that in mind, it's high time to turn on some holiday tunes! You can find all of our holiday music programming here, including our three 24/7 holiday music streams: Heavenly Holiday Classics, Perfect Holiday Party Soundtrack, and Ultimate Holiday Classical Mix. A neat trick: you can play the holiday streams on your smart speaker, too! Here's how.
What else is happening at CRB? Read on!
EVENTS
BOSTON SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA
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Jean-Yves Thibaudet is the soloist in Khachaturian’s vibrant, colorful Piano Concerto, part of a program that also includes Tania León's Pulitzer prize-winning "Stride" and Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No. 6, the “Pathétique.”
WCRB IN CONCERT
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On WCRB In Concert with the Tanglewood Music Center Orchestra, Andris Nelsons conducts Debussy's "La Mer" and Dima Slobodeniouk leads the TMCO in Sibelius's Second Symphony, part of a program of highlights from the summer of 2023 in the Berkshires.
THE BACH HOUR
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On The Bach Hour, the renowned cellist places the composer's music at the center of a world-wide effort to build local communities and confront their unique challenges.
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On The Bach Hour, the Prague-based harpsichordist reveals the astonishing creative force embedded in Bach's Toccatas, and Ton Koopman directs the Cantata 187.
BLOG
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What would the Olympics be without the best of the best athletes... and classical composers?
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The Pulitzer Prize- and Grammy-winning composer, singer, and musician speaks with James Bennett II about her new recording with Sō Percussion, the art of songwriting, collaboration, copyright law, and the satirical children's book "Go the F— to Sleep."
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It's a summer of discovering — and rediscovering — magical musical moments in the July Instant Replay.
ONE LAST THING
The Note is always free, but this week, it's even freer — we're sharing it online so you can share it with your friends! If you've read this far, first of all, thank you; second of all, share this link on social media so your friends know they can subscribe here.
Have a great week! I'll talk to you soon.
Kendall Todd