Nothing Says Christmas Like Brass in Full Voice

• Ten brass players performing as the Phoenix Brass Collective bring the power, brilliance, and warmth that only brass can deliver. From the bold fanfare of traditional carols to the intimate glow of chamber arrangements, brass instruments fill the hall with a sound that’s both majestic and embracing—perfect for the season. The ensemble is modeled after the celebrated London Brass style, known for blending precision with expressive richness.

Ancient Carols, Timeless Sound

• Three of the oldest carols on tonight’s program—Riu Riu Chiu, Coventry Carol, and Gabriel’s Message—date from the 1400s-1500s and survived through single manuscript copies. Riu Riu Chiu exists in only one surviving source from 1556, preserved at Uppsala University in Sweden. The Coventry Carol gained unexpected fame when the BBC broadcast it from the bombed-out ruins of Coventry Cathedral in 1940, transforming this medieval lullaby into a symbol of wartime resilience. When you hear these tonight, you’re experiencing melodies that have traveled across five centuries.

Born in a Heat Wave, Made for Snow

• Two of America’s most beloved Christmas songs were written during blistering summer heat. Irving Berlin’s “White Christmas” became the best-selling single of all time (over 50 million copies sold)—though it carries hidden sorrow: Berlin’s infant son died on Christmas Day 1928. Mel Tormé wrote “The Christmas Song”(“Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire”) in just 45 minutes on a sweltering July day in 1945, trying to “stay cool by thinking cool.” Both capture winter nostalgia born from longing—Berlin’s wistful melancholy and Tormé’s cozy imagery of chestnuts, fireplaces, and sleigh bells.

The English Carol Tradition: Folk Roots and Cambridge Elegance

• Percy Grainger’s Sussex Mummer’s Christmas Carol preserves a tune collected in 1880 from traveling performers who sang it during medieval-style plays. Grainger’s arrangement honors the earthy, modal folk melody while enriching it with lush brass harmonies. John Rutter’s Shepherd’s Pipe Carol, written when he was just 18 at Cambridge, represents the other end of English carol-making—a sprightly, dance-like original that captures a shepherd boy piping his way to Bethlehem with youthful joy and crystalline melody.

A Modern Myth: Greek Inventors Meet Santa

• Anthony DiLorenzo’s “The Toy Maker” imagines Saint Nicholas meeting the Greek inventor Daedalus, who builds him “a magnificent flying sled” complete with Jules Verne-style machinery. The three movements depict an experimental flying machine, a giant magical clock tower filled with “people, animals and fantastic creatures,” and finally the creation of Santa’s sleigh.