Brass Christmas Ball
by Michael McCall
The pioneering brass
ensemble from up north has recorded 10 Christmas albums since 1981. The
acknowledged favorite among classical fans is 1985’s Canadian Brass
Christmas, which focuses on meditative melodies and sumptuous carols from
the European folk and symphonic traditions. That album, with all its
grandeur and musicality, will provide the program’s core when the Canadian
Brass quintet joins with the Nashville Symphony Orchestra for the first of
its series of holiday weekend programs in December. Performing Thursday
through Saturday, the Brass undoubtedly will lighten proceedings with
sprightly translations of familiar holiday favorites—“Silver Bells” or
“Frosty the Snowman,” for instance. But it’s compositions like “The Sussex
Carol” and the passed-through-time “God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen” that will
let these five evolved horn players display why they remain such a highly
regarded touring troupe.
Thu., Dec. 11, 7 p.m., 2008
Thu., Dec. 11, 7 p.m., 2008
