This December: Celebrate the Holidays with the Detroit Symphony Orchestra

Programs include Noel Night with the Brubeck Brothers and Aguankó, Home for the Holidays, Home Alone in Concert, a Holiday Flute Quartet, and A Charlie Brown Christmas with Cyrus Chestnut and friends

Tickets on sale now at dso.org

Detroit, (November 15, 2022) – This December, the Detroit Symphony Orchestra (DSO) will celebrate the holiday season with programs on the PNC Pops and Paradise Jazz series, a classic holiday film with music, a community chamber recital, and participation in Midtown Detroit’s Noel Night.

On Saturday, December 3 at 6 p.m., the DSO will once again partner with Midtown Detroit, Inc., community partners, and businesses to celebrate Noel Night, a Cultural Center-wide holiday open house that presents free activities, including horse-drawn carriage rides, holiday shopping, family craft activities, and performances by over 100 area music, theater, and dance groups. In the Peter D. and Julie F. Cummings Cube (“The Cube,” for short, located within the DSO’s Midtown Campus of the Max M. and Marjorie S. Fisher Music Center), audiences will enjoy back-to-back performances starting at 6 p.m. First up, the Detroit Latin Jazz group Aguankó will perform selections from their critically acclaimed Christmas album, Latin Jazz Christmas in Havana. At 8 p.m., the The Brubeck Brothers Quartet (featuring sons of jazz giant Dave Brubeck) will take the stage to present a program influenced by funk, blues, and world music.

On Monday, December 5 at 7 p.m., DSO flutists Hannah Hammel Maser, Sharon Sparrow, Amanda Blaikie, and Shantanique Moore will perform arrangements of holiday favorites, including "The Holly and the Ivy," "Comfort and Joy," Corelli's Christmas Concerto, "Spanish Carol: a la Nanita Nana," "We Three Kings," "Deck the Halls," and "What Child Is This" in a Holiday Flute Quartet performance at the First Reformed Christian Church of Detroit.

On Friday, December 9 at 8 p.m., the DSO’s Paradise Jazz Series continues at Orchestra Hall with A Charlie Brown Christmas – Cyrus Chestnut & Friends. Virtuosic and playful pianist Cyrus Chestnut will perform classic charts from Vince Guaraldi’s A Charlie Brown Christmas including "Linus and Lucy," "Christmas Time is Here," and "O Tannenbaum.”

On Wednesday, December 14 at 7:30 p.m. at Orchestra Hall, the DSO will present Home Alone in Concert. Audiences will enjoy the beloved John Hughes film projected on a giant screen in stunning High Definition, accompanied live by John Williams’s captivating score performed by the DSO.

© 1990 Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation. All Rights Reserved.

The following weekend, Detroit’s favorite holiday tradition returns to the PNC Pops Series with Home for the Holidays. Former DSO Assistant Conductor Michelle Merrill will lead the DSO in a sparkling celebration of carols and holiday classics. The performances will take place Friday, December 16 at 10:45 a.m. and 8 p.m., Saturday, December 17 at 3 p.m. and 8 p.m., and Sunday, December 18 at 3 p.m. and 7 p.m. at Orchestra Hall.

2022-2023 SEASON DSO SAFETY POLICIES: The DSO no longer requires audiences to provide proof of COVID-19 vaccination or a negative COVID-19 test to attend performances. Masks are optional although strongly recommended at DSO performances, particularly when Wayne County and surrounding communities are in the high or "red" category as defined by the CDC. The DSO asks audience members to do their part to create a safe environment for everyone and encourages those who are not feeling well to stay home.

Tickets for these performances start at $15 for Holiday Flute Quartet (free to all Neighborhood Series subscribers, $10 for students), $19 for Cyrus Chestnut and Home for the Holidays, and $49 for Home Alone in Concert. Tickets for Noel Night are free but require reservation in advance. Tickets can be purchased or reserved at dso.org or by calling the Box Office at 313.576.5111, open Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Visit dso.org/holiday for full holiday programming information.

The title sponsor of the DSO’s PNC Pops Series is PNC Bank. The Paradise Jazz Series is made possible with support from Huntington and MGM Grand Detroit. Programming in the Peter D. & Julie F. Cummings Cube is supported by the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation and Peter and Julie Cummings. The William Davidson Neighborhood Concert Series is made possible by a generous grant from the William Davidson FoundationWRCJ 90.9 FM also supports the series.

 

NOEL NIGHT: FEATURING THE BRUBECK BROTHERS QUARTET
Saturday, December 3, 2022 at 6 p.m.
The Peter D. and Julie F. Cummings Cube
The Brubeck Brothers, quartet
Aguankó, ensemble
The DSO is proud to once again partner with Midtown Detroit, Inc., community partners, and businesses to celebrate Noel Night, a Cultural Center-wide holiday open house that presents free activities, including horse-drawn carriage rides, holiday shopping, family craft activities, and performances by over 100 area music, theater, and dance groups, and other special performances. The Cube will present back-to-back performances starting at 6 PM with the Detroit Latin Jazz Group Aguankó performing selections from their critically acclaimed Christmas album “Latin Jazz Christmas in Havana,” which turns Christmas standards into traditional Cuban music jewels.

 

HOLIDAY FLUTE QUARTET
Monday, December 5, 2022 at 7 p.m.
First Christian Reformed Church of Detroit (1444 Maryland St, Grosse Pointe Park, MI 48230)
Hannah Hammel Maser, flute
Sharon Sparrow, flute
Amanda Blaikie, flute
Shantanique Moore, flute
The flutes of the DSO come together to perform arrangements of holiday favorites, including "The Holly and the Ivy," "Comfort and Joy," Corelli's Christmas Concerto, "Spanish Carol: a la Nanita Nana," "We Three Kings," "Deck the Halls," "What Child Is This," and more!

 

A CHARLIE BROWN CHRISTMAS – CYRUS CHESTNUT & FRIENDS
Paradise Jazz Series
Friday, December 9, 2022 at 8 p.m.
Orchestra Hall
Cyrus Chestnut, piano
The holidays don't officially arrive until you hear Vince Guaraldi's classic score from A Charlie Brown Christmas. Virtuosic and playful pianist Cyrus Chestnut infuses these classic charts with his soulful sound. Hear all your favorites: "Linus and Lucy," "Christmas Time is Here," "O Tannenbaum," and more!

HOME ALONE IN CONCERT
DSO Presents
Wednesday, December 14, 2022 at 7:30 p.m. at Orchestra Hall
Constantine Kitsopoulos, conductor
Enjoy one of the most beloved holiday films of all time projected on a giant screen in stunning High Definition, accompanied by the Detroit Symphony Orchestra! Relive John Hughes's charming and hilarious story about family, with John Williams's captivating score and the young Macaulay Culkin, who captured the hearts of audiences worldwide.
 © 1990 Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation. All Rights Reserved.

HOME FOR THE HOLIDAYS
PNC Pops Series
Friday, December 16, 2022 at 10:45 a.m.
Friday, December 16, 2022 at 8 p.m.
Saturday, December 17, 2022 at 3 p.m.
Saturday, December 17, 2022 at 8 p.m.
Sunday, December 18, 2022 at 3 p.m.
Sunday, December 18, 2022 at 7 p.m.
Michelle Merrill, conductor
Share Detroit's favorite holiday musical tradition with family and friends and thrill to the spectacle of the season. Stuart Chafetz returns to lead the DSO and vocalist Michael Preacely in a sparkling celebration with carols and classics that sells out year after year – and yes, Virginia, there will be a Santa Claus!

 

About the DSO
The most accessible orchestra on the planet, the acclaimed Detroit Symphony Orchestra is known for trailblazing performances, collaborations with the world’s foremost musical artists, and a deep connection to its city. As a community-supported orchestra, generous giving by individuals and institutions at all levels drives the continued success and growth of the organization. In January 2020, Italian conductor Jader Bignamini was named the DSO’s next music director to commence with the 2020-2021 season. Celebrated conductor, arranger, and trumpeter Jeff Tyzik is the orchestra’s Principal Pops Conductor, while Oscar-nominated trumpeter and composer Terence Blanchard holds the Fred A. Erb Jazz Creative Director Chair.

Making its home at historic Orchestra Hall within the Max M. and Marjorie S. Fisher Music Center, the DSO offers a performance schedule that features PVS Classical, PNC Pops, Paradise Jazz, and Young People’s Family Concert series. One of the world’s most acoustically perfect concert halls, Orchestra Hall celebrated its centennial in 2019-2020. In addition, the DSO presents the William Davidson Neighborhood Concert Series in seven metro area venues, as well as a robust schedule of eclectic multi-genre performances in its mid-size venue The Cube, constructed and curated with support from Peter D. & Julie F. Cummings.

A dedication to broadcast innovation began in 1922, when the DSO became the first orchestra in the world to present a live radio broadcast of a concert and continues today with the groundbreaking Live from Orchestra Hall series of free webcasts, which also reaches tens of thousands of children with the Classroom Edition expansion. With growing attendance and unwavering philanthropic support from the people of Detroit, the DSO actively pursues a mission to embrace and inspire individuals, families, and communities through unsurpassed musical experiences.