Sunday, Nov. 23
7:00 - 8:00 am on Classical HQR 92.7
With Heart and Voice Thanksgiving Special
Thursday, Nov. 27
9:00 - 10:00 am on Classical HQR
Shadowglow
This Thanksgiving enjoy an hour of music celebrating the special radiance of autumn and the richness of the holiday—music inspired by the uncanny fire of starlight, the hopeful warmth of luminaria, the lamps of gratitude we light within ourselves, even the golden glow of beloved Thanksgiving treats fresh from the oven. Michael Torke’s Appalachian-inspired Spoonbread is a scrumptious soundtrack for puttering in the kitchen, and Peter Boyer’s Radiance, the incandescent “Choose Something Like a Star” from Randall Thompson’s Frostiana, Michael Whalen’s nostalgic Shadows of October, Kenji Bunch’s contemplative Luminaria and Craig Hella Johnson’s affirming The Song That I Came to Sing fill the holiday with shimmering nuances of gratitude and hope.
10:00 - 11:00 am on Classical HQR
Every Good Thing
This Thanksgiving, host Andrea Blain and classical music fans from all around the country take time to give thanks and celebrate one of life's most meaningful gifts: music. It's Every Good Thing — an hour of stories and music to celebrate Thanksgiving.
11:00 am - Noon on Classical HQR
Songs of Thanks
Join us for "Songs of Thanks," an innovative new production by Cantus, presented exclusively by Minnesota Public Radio. Through their signature narrative programming, the acclaimed octet will weave together stories and songs celebrating gratitude and community. Don't miss this special broadcast, designed to uplift the human spirit and honor the season.
Sunday, Nov. 30
7:00 am - 8:00 am on Classical HQR 92.7
With Heart and Voice Advent Special
8am - noon on Classical HQR 92.7
Sunday Baroque Advent Special
Sunday, December 7
7:00 am - 8:00 am on Classical HQR 92.7
With Heart and Voice Advent Special
8:00 am - noon on Classical HQR 92.7
Sunday Baroque Advent Special
Monday, December 15
8:00 pm - 10:00 pm on Classical HQR 92.7
Salmagundi Holiday Special
Sunday, December 21
7:00 - 8:00 am on Classical HQR 92.7
With Heart and Voice Christmas Special
8:00 - 10:00 am on Classical HQR 92.7
Sunday Baroque Christmas Special
Noon - 1:00 pm on Classical HQR 92.7
Classical Guitar Alive - Music for Christmas
Monday, December 22
6:00 - 7:00 pm on Classical HQR 92.7
Candles Burning Brightly
7:00 - 8:00 pm on Classical HQR 92.7
A Chanukah Celebration with Chicago a cappella
Join Jonathan Miller, artistic director of Chicago a cappella and a longtime champion of Jewish choral music, for an inspiring and informative show featuring choral music set to Chanukah texts. Familiar tunes include "I Have a Little Dreidel" (both in its original Yiddish form and in a neo-funk Hebrew/English setting), a swing version of "S'vivon" by Steve Barnett, and a lively setting of the traditional melody for "Al-Hanissim" ("For the Miracles") by Elliot Levine. Heartfelt original compositions by American and British composers provide added depth of expression to celebrating the holiday. Such works include "Lo Yisa Goy," a plea for peace by Stacy Garrop; Bob Applebaum's stirring new version of "Haneirot Halalu"; and movements from the majestic "Hallel Suite" by London-based Daniel Tunkel. All selections are performed by Chicago a cappella, the virtuoso vocal ensemble now in its 23rd season. Jonathan Miller provides liturgical and cultural background as part of this unique look inside old and newer choral Chanukah traditions.
8:00 pm - 10:00 pm on Classical HQR 92.7
Salmagundi Holiday Special
Monday evening on Salmagundi, we'll feature the lovely "Christmas Rondo" of 21st century composer Rick Sowash, and - as my annual Christmas gift to Classical HQR listeners - Pablo Casals' joyful Christmas tale of rural Catalonia, "El Pesebre" (The Manger). Pablo Casals wrote this work in 1960, with the message that Peace alone can save humankind from its infinite errors.
Wednesday, December 24
10:00 am - Noon on Classical HQR 92.7
Listen Live! - A Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols
7:00 pm - 8:00 pm on WHQR 91.3 FM
Homemade Holiday Shorts 2025 Live from WHQR MC Erny Gallery
8:00 pm to 9:00 pm on Classical HQR 92.7
A Chanticleer Christmas
Grammy award-winning vocal ensemble Chanticleer is known as the “orchestra of voices” for its unparalleled range and abilities. This holiday season, the group brings its brand-new Christmas program including original arrangements of well-known tunes drawn from Classical, Jazz, and Popular traditions. They fluently weave between diverse musical styles to create an evening of wonder and joy.
9:00 pm - 10:00 pm on Classical HQR 92.7
Welcome Christmas
Welcome Christmas is a perennial Christmas favorite from VocalEssence, one of the world's premier choral ensembles, conducted by Philip Brunelle and G. Phillip Shoultz. Join host Bonnie North for an hour of traditional carols and new discoveries.
Thursday, December 25
9:00 am - 10:00 am on Classical HQR 92.7
Welcome Christmas
Welcome Christmas is a perennial Christmas favorite from VocalEssence, one of the world's premier choral ensembles, conducted by Philip Brunelle and G. Phillip Shoultz. Join host Bonnie North for an hour of traditional carols and new discoveries.
10:00 am - Noon on Classical HQR 92.7
St Olaf Christmas Festival
A service in song and word that has become one of the nation’s most cherished holiday celebrations. The festival includes hymns, carols, choral works, as well as orchestral selections celebrating the Nativity and featuring more than 500 student musicians in five choirs and the St. Olaf Orchestra.
Noon - 2:00 pm on Classical HQR 92.7
Performance Today Holiday Special
2:00 pm - 3:00 pm on Classical HQR 92.7
A Handel and Haydn Society Christmas
Celebrate the season with this hour-long special featuring Christmas choral music from America’s oldest continuously performing ensemble, Boston’s Handel & Haydn Society. Founded in 1815, the Society is celebrating their bicentennial season, including their 400th performance of Handel’s “Messiah.” Join Host Cale Wiggins for this program featuring music from the 15th century to the late 20th ; a Christmas for all times.
3:00 pm - 4:00 pm on Classical HQR 92.7
Gaudete!
Sara Schneider, producer and host of Early Music Now, presents Gaudete! Early Music for the Christmas Season, with joyful and contemplative sounds of the season. In this 1-hour holiday special, we’ll hear Byzantine chant by Kassiani, and selections from Missa Puer natus est nobis by Thomas Tallis, plus hymns and motets from Spain, Germany, and France. Our performers include The Cardinall’s Musick, Theatre of Voices, Cappella Romana, and Oltremontano.
4:00 pm - 5:00 pm on Classical HQR 92.7
Mark O'Connor's An Appalachian Christmas
5:00 pm - 6:00 pm on Classical HQR 92.7
Carols, Customs and Candlelight: a Celtic Christmas Celebration
6:00 pm - 7:00 pm on Classical HQR 92.7
An Elizabethan Christmas with the Rose Ensemble
7:00 pm - 8:00 pm on Classical HQR 92.7
Exploring Music with Bill McGlaughlin Holiday Special
8:00 pm - 10:00 pm on Classical HQR 92.7
A Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols
Friday, December 26
Noon - 1:00 pm on WHQR 91.3
A Season's Griot
Hosted by the late beloved storyteller, Madafo Lloyd Wilson, A Season's Griot is an annual one-hour special that captures the tales and traditions of African American and African peoples. The show’s poet laureate, Beverly Fields Burnette, and other members of the Season’s Griot family return with familiar and favorite elements of Griot.
Sunday, December 28
7:00 am - 8:00 am on Classical HQR 92.7
With Heart and Voice New Year Special
8:00 am - Noon on Classical HQR 92.7
Sunday Baroque New Year Special
Noon - 1:00 pm on Classical HQR 92.7
Classical Guitar Alive - Music of Winter
Monday, December 29
8:00 pm - 10:00 pm on Classical HQR 92.7
Salmagundi New Year Special
Thursday, January 1
11:00 am - 1:00 pm on NPR
Listen Live! - New Year's Day Concert in Vienna
7:00 pm - 8:00 pm on WHQR 91.3
A Season's Griot
Hosted by the late beloved storyteller, Madafo Lloyd Wilson, A Season's Griot is an annual one-hour special that captures the tales and traditions of African American and African peoples. The show’s poet laureate, Beverly Fields Burnette, and other members of the Season’s Griot family return with familiar and favorite elements of Griot.
