NSOI: Christmas Lunchtime

Leroy Anderson A Christmas Festival  

Traditional Good King Wenceslas arr. David Willcocks 

Handel ‘Rejoice Greatly’ from Messiah 

Leroy Anderson Sleigh Ride  

Adam O Holy Night 

Tchaikovsky Waltz of the Flowers from The Nutcracker 

Waldteufel The Skater’s Waltz 

Paul Campbell A Celtic Nativity 

Pierpont Jingle Bells arr. David Willcocks 

Traditional The Twelve Days of Christmas arr. Stephen Doughty 

Traditional Schneewalzer arr. Goff Richards 

Christmas wouldn’t seem like Christmas without Christopher Bell’s festive and fun orchestral jamboree with the ‘elegance and expressivity’ (OperaWire) of exceptional young Irish soprano Sarah Shine adding silver-toned lustre to seasonal favourites and much-loved carols. 

Because it’s Christmas, there is something for everyone: the old, new and traditional blended together in a generously filled musical Christmas stocking. Highlights include the infectious medleys of carols in Leroy Anderson’s A Christmas Festival and Paul Campbell’s A Celtic Nativity, alongside Anderson’s thrilling Sleigh Ride and the exultant ‘Rejoice Greatly’ from Handel’s Messiah. 

The season’s glittering romance is conjured in Tchaikovsky’s tinsel-delicate Waltz of the Flowers, Waldteufel’s gliding The Skater’s Waltz, and the sublime, stilled beauty of O Holy Night. 

Escape from December’s laden skies and the hurly-burly of present-buying to revel in the enchantment, joy, warmth and emotion celebrating the spirit of Christmas in an hour of Yuletide treats. 

Presented by NCH