No matter what holiday you celebrate WHQR has the perfect holiday music for you!
Check out our list of upcoming holiday-themed shows:
Chanukah/Hanukkah
Hanukkah Lights 2014 (NPR) 7 p.m. Monday 12/15 on 91.3 FM
A perennial NPR favorite with brand new Hanukkah stories written by acclaimed authors Debra Ginsberg, Anne Burt, Simone Zelitch, Andrew Borowitz, and Theodore Bikel. Hear a wide variety of stories perfect for the holiday --- one story is funny and crisp, another historical, and there's one with a multicultural theme. Also included is a story about the supernatural and one that ends with the best last line for any Hanukkah show, "Love is the only miracle." Hosted by Susan Stamberg and Murray Horwitz.
Candles Burning Brightly (APM) 12 noon Tuesday 12/16 on 96.7 FM -- Join hosts Mindy Ratner and Bill Morelock for a one-hour celebration of Chanukah, the Jewish Festival of Lights. There's plenty of music from Jewish communities around the world, plus an exploration of holiday traditions, and a special story reading by the incomparable Theodore Bikel.
Christmas
Advent Voices (APM) 12 noon, Monday 12/15 on 96.7 FM --Advent is a time of quiet contemplation and waiting. It's waiting for darkness to become light and for hopes to be realized. Throughout the centuries Advent has been observed musically in sacred and secular ways. Join Lynne Warfel for an hour of the most beautiful vocal music inspired by and written for Advent
A Baroque Christmas in the New World (PRI) 12 noon Wednesday 12/17 on 96.7 FM -- In celebration of the holiday season, A Baroque Christmas in the New World brings your listeners music from 17th- and 18th-century Mexico, Peru and Bolivia, including a cantata and three free-standing works by Sumaya — most of which comes from the only surviving manuscript in full-score in Sumaya's own hand.
A Chanticleer Christmas (APM) 12 noon, Thursday 12/18 on 97.7 FM -- Chanticleer Christmas is a one-hour celebration of the season as told through the 12 glorious voices of Chanticleer, the San Francisco-based men's choir. The program spans the globe and the centuries - from England in the 1300s to new arrangements of classic and contemporary carols to Chanticleer's popular Gospel medley of Christmas tunes.
Concierto Christmas (PRI) 12 noon, Friday 12/19 on 96.7 FM -- Frank Dominguez hosts a special holiday edition of the national bi-lingual program that features music by Spanish and Latin American composers and performers presented in English and in Spanish. This edition features traditional Spanish language villancicos from 18th century Cuba, 19th century Uruguay, and 17th century Ecuador.
Welcome Christmas! (APM) at 12 noon, Monday 12/22 on 96.7 FM -- It's an hour of joyful holiday music featuring one of the world's premiere choral groups, VocalEssence, led by Philip Brunelle. This year, a tribute to the late Dave Brubeck with his classical Christmas cantata "La Fiesta de la Posada". Plus, this year's winners of the annual carol contest with the American Composers Forum.
St. Olaf Christmas Festival (APM) at 12 noon on Tuesday, 12/23, on 96.7 FM -- A service in song and word that has become one of the nation’s most cherished holiday celebrations. Tickets to the event, which takes place at St. Olaf College in Northfield, MN, are always gone months in advance. The festival includes hymns, carols, choral works, and orchestral selections celebrating the Nativity and featuring more than 500 student musicians who are members of five choirs and the St. Olaf Orchestra.
A Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols (APM) Live at 10 a.m. on Christmas Eve -- Wednesday, 12/24, on 91.3 & 96.7 FM --Hosted by Michael Barone, this is a live broadcast from the chapel of King's College in Cambridge, England. The 30-voice King's College Choir performs the legendary Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols service of Biblical readings and music.
Jonathan Winters' A Christmas Carol Christmas Day @ 7 p.m. on 91.3 FM -- An updated version of a public radio tradition hosted by NPR's Susan Stamberg. Master comedian Jonathan Winters presents a distinctive reading of Dickens' holiday classic, with a special performing edition prepared by Dickens for his own presentations. Also featuring Mimi Kennedy. From NPR and KCRW
A Great American Songbook Christmas at 8pm on Christmas Day:--Phil Furia shares the stories behind some of the most beloved Holiday classics from The Great American Songbook.
Kwanzaa
A Season's Griot (PRI & WHQR) at 12 Noon on Friday, Dec. 26, on 91.3 & 96.7 FM -- This one-hour celebration in story and song is public radio's only nationally syndicated Kwanzaa program. Hosted for nearly 20 years by acclaimed storyteller Madafo Lloyd Wilson, this annual special captures the tales and traditions of African American and African peoples. This year's program will celebrate Peace with special guests Pamela Reid, Joyce Grear and the show's poet laureate, Beverly Burnette.
New Year's Day
New Year's Day from Vienna 2015 at 11 a.m. January 1 on 96.7 FM -- The Philharmonic presents its ever popular annual New Year's Day concert from the Golden Hall of the Musikverein in Vienna. You'll hear your favorite waltzes, polkas and more -- a festive way to start off the New Year. Presented by NPR Music and WGBH, Boston.