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As noted last week, choirs are the big deal during the lead-up to the holidays. But that doesn’t mean there isn’t other music tailored for December merrymaking.
Let’s look at some selected options:
Handel’s Messiah has become a regular holiday feature, but Tchaikovsky’s Nutcracker is almost as illustrious. Of course, it’s always been about the festive season (the titular implement is a Christmas gift, after all), but it took a while for ballet companies all over the world to make it a December tradition. A 1944 Christmas Eve production in San Francisco launched the trend, which is still going strong. Vancouver gets a choice of two different Nutcrackers this year: The Royal Winnipeg Ballet offers five performances Dec. 12-14, while Goh Ballet offers five performances of its version, Dec. 18-21. Both companies perform at the Queen Elizabeth Theatre. Check out balletbc.com and gohnutcracker.com for times and tickets.
At the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra, there’s a variety of holiday music on tap all month. A succession of holiday movies with live music accompaniment starts with a Dec. 6 matinee (2 p.m.) of The Snowman, followed by Home Alone, Dec. 17 and 18 (7 p.m.), and Elf, Dec. 19 and 20 (7 p.m.), all at The Orpheum Theatre.
Movies with orchestral accompaniment are tailor-made for the Orpheum, but the VSO also moves out of its downtown home to bring music to other venues. Vivaldi’s Four Seasons, plus Corelli’s Christmas Concerto, some Bach and a new work by Gabriella Smith are on offer at UBC’s Chan Centre, Dec. 11 and 12 (7:30 p.m.).
Then there is the VSO’s long-running and much loved A Traditional Christmas project, a sentimental mix of seasonal concert music, readings and carols. This year’s launch is on Dec. 10 (7:30 p.m.), at South Delta Baptist Church in Tsawwassen. Next come concerts on the North Shore, starting at West Vancouver’s Kay Meek Centre Dec. 11 (7:30 p.m.), followed by two performances at North Vancouver’s Centennial Theatre on Dec. 12 (4 and 7:30 p.m.). Surrey’s Bell Performing Arts Centre also sees two shows on Dec. 13 (4 and 7:30 p.m.). The program winds up back in the Orpheum on Dec. 21 (4 and 7:30 p.m.). If you think your holiday plans are complicated, best not to think of the logistics of such a massive enterprise in so many places. But, as a multi-generational friend-winning gambit for our home-team orchestra, A Traditional Christmas is an absolute winner.
Caroline Shaw is the headliner at Music on Main.
Most holiday music is all sweetness and sentimentality. At Music on Main, Music for a Winter Solstice appeals to sophisticated listeners who prefer something festive but unconventional. Composer-singer-violinist Caroline Shaw, who won a Pulitzer Prize for her a cappella Partita for 8 Voices, is the headliner this year. Two performances at the gem of Main Street, Heritage Hall, on Dec. 10 and 11. Doors (and drinks if you choose) at 7 p.m.; music around 7:30 p.m.
What to do once Boxing Day has come and gone? Celebrate New Year’s, of course! Quiring in the New Year is a popular annual event at Coquitlam’s Evergreen Cultural Centre. It starts at 7:30 p.m. and will be over in time to move on to parties to ring in 2026 — or just go home for a long winter’s nap.
For New Year’s Day, the VSO’s on tap for the local franchise of the Salute to Vienna New Year’s Concert, a frothy, oh-so-sweet confection of music and dance. That takes place on Jan. 1, 2026 (2:30 p.m.), at The Orpheum.
Related
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