'Tis the season for holiday cheer. Like, a lot of it.
Yes, this month will see New York City completely erupt in song. Don't be surprised if you turn a corner and see an a capella group congregated in a corner.
We're not even kidding.
We're certain there will be a ton of free holiday concerts on the subway, plenty of touristy holiday concerts, and plenty of #RealNewYorker holiday concerts.
There will also be a lot of traditional NYC concerts; concerts put on by orchestra groups, a capella groups, and one huge concert at Rockefeller Center with a lot of tubas.
Want to get your holiday jam on? Read on to find out what concerts you need to attend in NYC this holiday season.
1. Christmas Across Centuries (2960 Broadway)
carnegiehall Peter Phillips and The Tallis Scholars perform works by Josquin des Préz and William Byrd. #carnegiehall #weillrecitalhall #tallisscholars #BeforeBach #latergram 📷: Stefan Cohen
This is not the first year we've celebrated Christmas, you know. In fact, it's not even the 400th. If you love vocal ensembles, you love history, and you love being blown away by amazing music, you should probably come to Christmas Across Centuries.
There you'll get to watch the a cappella group, Tallis Scholars, perform the stunning 16th Century works of Thomas Tallis and John Sheppard.
The Tallis Scholars will conclude the evening with a pair of works by Arvo Pärt, whose reverence for his musical forbearers echoes in his work, and will certainly echo in the voices of the Tallis Scholars.
Peter Phillips will direct, the Tallis Scholars will play Renaissance tunes, and all you have to do is be enchanted. Seeing the Tallis Scholars perform is akin to a divine experience even if you don't believe in any higher power at all. Get your tickets here.
2. Holiday Cheer for FUV (2124 Broadway)
phillyjim See you Saturday @brandicarlile Photo from Gorge 2014 #thegorgeamphitheatre #brandicarlile #davematthewsband See you guys soon as well @miss634 @viglou :)
On Friday, December 4th, Brandi Carlile is coming to The Beacon Theatre with some pals. Pals like Dawes, Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings, and Lucius.
You can be one of those pals. We doubt she'll let you come onstage like her other pals we mentioned, but you can still be part of all the holiday madness.
This tradition of holiday cheer is quickly morphing into a tradition at The Beacon, and will be an evening of unique artistic camaraderie, collaboration, and of course the festivity of holiday cheer.
Plus, a great part about the evening is that it benefits WFUV, the noncommercial radio station at Fordham University. Have we sparked your interest?
You can get your tickets here.
3. Anonymous 4: The Last Noel (1000 5th Avenue)
bruce_molsky Tiny Desk Concert folks at NPR were great. Nice to see Bob Boilen again (last time was at 930 Club on Nickel Creek tour, probably 9 years ago). The desk is not really tiny, but big enough for Anonymous 4 and me anyway. The piece should be up in about three weeks. Stay tuned! @a4tweets #anonymous4 #oldtimefiddle #oldtimebanjo
Anonymous 4 is an a cappella quartet based in our wonderful NYC.
The quartet mainly performs medieval tunes, but on December 22nd as they perform "The Last Noel" at the Metropolitan Museum of Art at 6:30 p.m., we'll take a wild venture that their theme will be holiday music.
Oh, there's also the tiny added fact that this is their last concert ever, after more than thirty years of international touring and recording.
If you feel like being astounded, feel like having Anonymous 4 send chills down your spine, then make sure you get to the Met on December 22nd to hear their voices join in harmony for ancient, traditional, and modern seasonal tunes in front of the Met's stunning Christmas tree.
Get your tickets here.
4. The Metropolitan Opera National Council Holiday Sing-A-Long (158 Bleecker Street)
newyorksocialdiary A scene from Act I of Tosca at the Metropolitan Opera House starring Liudmyla Monastyrska in the title role, Roberto Aronica as Tosca's lover, the artist Cavaradossi, and Marco Vratogna as the police chief Scarpia. 8:15 PM. Photo @metopera #nyc #opera #metropolitanopera #tosca
Watching people sing for the holidays is great, but what's even better is having the chance to sing along with the music yourself, right?
The Eastern Region committee of the Metropolitan Opera will host their auditions live for you to come, sing, and be a part of the cheer. Hopefully it'll be cheery. Sometimes The Voice is cheery, and that's all one huge audition, right?
The auditioning musicians will be joined by veteran soprano Erin Morley, and everyone will enjoy operatic songs, traditional carols, and modern classics.
It's happening at Le Poisson Rouge on December 6th; there are two shows, one at 5 p.m. and one at 8 p.m. If you have small children, they'll be particularly entertained at the 5 p.m. show. Get your tickets for the 6 p.m. show here, and tickets for the 9 p.m. show here.
,5. UNSILENT NIGHT (Washington Square Park)
UNSILENT NIGHT is one of those #OnlyInNYC holiday traditions.
You're probably familiar with the classic tradition of caroling. What's better than caroling, right? UNSILENT NIGHT takes that wonderful, participatory, community activity and puts a modern spin on it.
Composer Phil Kline will lead a huge chorus of New Yorkers, all of whom have boomboxes slung over their shoulders, from the West Village to the East Village during the 24th annual installation of UNSILENT NIGHT.
If you want to participate, gather under Washington Square Arch on Saturday, December 12th at 6:45 p.m. Then, an hour and a mile later, you'll find yourself in Tompkins Square Park.
Phil Kline will hand out a limited number of vintage boomboxes from his collection, and cassettes and CDs for everyone who brings their own. You're strongly encouraged to either bring your own boombox, or bring your own speakers and download the tracks ahead of time.
Learn more about downloading the tracks ahead of time here.
6. Merry Tuba Christmas (30 Rockefeller Plaza)
Going to see the Rockefeller Center's Christmas Tree has got to be at the top of every New Yorker's holiday bucket list, right?
We thought so. So why wouldn't you come out to the absolutely free concert below the tree on Sunday, December 13th?
There will be hundreds of tenor and bass tuba players completely rocking out for the holidays, playing Christmas carols and other crowd favorites. Spectators are strongly encouraged to sing along, which will make this whole event so much more fun, don't you think?
The event begins at 3:30 p.m., and you don't need to do anything to prepare besides show up. Oh, and dress warmly.
7. Winter Solstice Celebration (1047 Amsterdam Avenue)
There will be four Winter Solstice Celebrations at the Cathedral of Saint John the Divine. They'll be on December 17th, 18th, and 19th, and they'll all be completely enthralling.
First of all, the acoustics in what's widely heralded as NYC's greatest Cathedra, are so good, they're dizzying.
Second of all, the show will be an immersive performance of music and dance as the 36th annual Winter Solstice erupts in tune, as the performers display a contemporary take on ancient solstice.
This event has escalated to the point that it's practically a must-do for the holiday season in NYC at this point. You in? Grab your tickets here.
Check out 7 Amazing Ways to Go Hard This First December Weekend in NYC.
[Feature Image Courtesy CoffeeMeetsBagel.com]