Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra Rings in the Holiday Season

Milwaukee, Wis. 10/28/2024 – The Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra‘s annual line-up of holiday performances is bigger and better than ever. Throughout November and December, Allen-Bradley Hall will alight with festive film favorites, including Coco in Concert and The Muppet Christmas Carol, one-night-only engagements with world-class ensembles like Canadian Brass and The King’s Singers, and the return of the MSO’s beloved Hometown Holiday Pops concerts. The Milwaukee Symphony Chorus gets its chance to shine in J.S. Bach’s Christmas Oratorio under the baton of Music Director Ken-David Masur, while The Commercialists and The Adrian Dunn Singers bring a jazzy touch to the season’s merrymaking. For fans of Milwaukee’s finest orchestral music, the holiday season at the Bradley Symphony Center is sure to be merry and bright.

Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra Holiday Concerts 2024

All performances take place in Allen-Bradley Hall at the Bradley Symphony Center
212 W. Wisconsin Avenue
Milwaukee, WI 53203
Box Office: 414-291-7605
Online: www.mso.org

Coco in Concert

7:30 pm on Saturday, November 2
2:30 pm on Sunday, November 3

Ryan Tani, conductor

Experience Disney Pixar’s Coco in Concert featuring a screening of the complete film with Oscar® and Grammy®-winning composer Michael Giacchino’s musical score performed by the MSO. In addition to the original score by Giacchino, “Coco” also features the Oscar®-winning song “Remember Me” by Oscar-winning songwriters Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez, as well as additional songs co-written by Germaine Franco and co-director and screenwriter Adrian Molina.

Presentation licensed by Disney Concerts. © All Rights Reserved.

Bach’s Christmas Oratorio

7:30 pm on Friday, November 22
7:30 pm on Saturday, November 23
2:30 pm on Sunday, November 24

Ken-David Masur, conductor
Georgia Burashko, mezzo-soprano
Daniel Ochoa, baritone
Milwaukee Symphony Chorus
Cheryl Frazes HIll, director

Now considered one of Bach’s most opulent musical achievements, his Christmas Oratorio went unheard for over a century after its first performances, until a resurgence of holiday celebrations brought it back into fashion. Each of its six cantatas was intended for a Christmas high feast day; Music Director Ken-David Masur and the MSO are joined by the Milwaukee Symphony Chorus to ensure the oratorio’s messages of contemplation, abundance, and jubilation ring from the rafters.

The Muppet Christmas Carol

7:30 pm on Friday, November 29
7:30 pm on Saturday, November 30
2:30 pm on Sunday, December 1

Ryan Tani, conductor

Experience Charles Dickens’s classic holiday tale as only the Muppets can tell it. Kermit and the gang help Ebenezer Scrooge, played by actor Michael Caine, find redemption and his holiday spirit one fateful Christmas Eve. The Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra plays the memorable score composed by Miles Goodman with songs by Paul Williams while the delightful family film plays on the big screen.

Presentation licensed by Disney Concerts. © All Rights Reserved.

Canadian Brass

7:30 pm on Thursday, December 5

Joe Burgstaller, trumpet
Chuck Daellenbach, tuba
Ashley Hall-Tinghe, trumpet
Achilles Liarmakopoulos, trombone
Jeff Nelson, horn

Ring in the holiday season with the internationally renowned, award-winning Canadian Brass performing seasonal favorites, holiday classics, and brass standards in an entertaining evening at the Bradley Symphony Center.

With an international reputation as one of the most popular brass ensembles today, Canadian Brass has truly earned the distinction of “the world’s most famous brass group.” Masters of concert presentations, Canadian Brass has developed a uniquely engaging stage presence and rapport with audiences. Each of their concerts will show the full range from trademark Baroque and Dixieland tunes to new compositions and arrangements created especially for them — from formal classical presentations to music served up with lively dialogue and theatrical effects. The hallmark of any Canadian Brass performance is entertainment, spontaneity, virtuosity, and most of all, fun–but never at the expense of the music; whatever the style, the music is central and performed with utmost dedication, skill, and excellence.

Bradley Symphony Center Presents programs do not include MSO musicians.

The Commercialists: A Charlie Brown Christmas

7:00 pm on Friday, December 6
9:00 pm on Friday, December 6

Anthony Deutsch, piano
Patrick Morrow, drums
Clay Schaub, bass
Donna Woodall, vocalist

Good Grief! Local favorites The Commercialists bring their annual holiday tradition back to the Bradley Symphony Center. Sit right on the stage as you experience a live performance of Vince Guaraldi Trio’s “A Charlie Brown Christmas,” complete with bar service. Your up-close-and-personal onstage floor ticket includes one drink. The vocal stylings of jazz singer Donna Woodall usher in the holiday season.

The Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra will not perform at this event.

Adrian Dunn’s WONDERFUL: A Soulful Celebration

7:30 pm on Saturday, December 7

Adrian Dunn, conductor
The Adrian Dunn Singers

Sing praise and hallelujah to an evening of holiday hits from the gospel tradition! Drums, guitars, and tambourines will alight in a festive celebration of an adventurous, deeply soulful musical style that continues to inspire hope and spark change. Emmy Award-nominated composer and conductor Adrian Dunn leads his eponymous chamber chorus, which takes “the entire audience to church and beyond” (Times Square Chronicle) as the songs of the season ring clear and bright.

Bradley Symphony Center Presents programs do not include MSO musicians.

Hometown Holiday Pops

2:30 pm on Saturday, December 14
7:30 pm on Saturday, December 14
2:30 pm on Sunday, December 15
7:30 pm on Friday, December 20
2:30 pm on Saturday, December 21
7:30 pm on Saturday, December 21
2:30 pm on Sunday, December 22

Ryan Tani, conductor
Milwaukee Symphony Chorus
Cheryl Frazes HIll, director

Bring the entire family to the Bradley Symphony Center for Milwaukee’s favorite holiday tradition! Celebrate the season with a musical jubilee of cherished classics, yuletide carols, and festive sing-alongs with your one and only orchestra.

The King’s Singers

7:30 pm on Monday, December 16

Celebrate the magic of Christmas with The King’s Singers, who have represented the gold standard in a cappella singing on the world’s greatest stages for over 50 years. They are renowned for their unrivaled technique, versatility, and skill in performance, as well as for their consummate musicianship, drawing both on the group’s rich heritage and its pioneering spirit to create an extraordinary wealth of original works and unique collaborations.

Bradley Symphony Center Presents programs do not include MSO musicians.

About the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra
The Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra, led by Music Director Ken-David Masur, is among the finest orchestras in the nation and the largest cultural institution in Wisconsin. Since its inception in 1959, the MSO has found innovative ways to give music a home in the region, develop music appreciation and talent among area youth, and raise the national reputation of Milwaukee.

The MSO’s full-time professional musicians perform over 135 classics, pops, family, education, and community concerts each season in venues throughout the state. A pioneer among American orchestras, the MSO has performed world and American premieres of works by John Adams, Roberto Sierra, Philip Glass, Geoffrey Gordon, Marc Neikrug, Matthias Pintscher, and Dobrinka Tabakova, as well as garnered national recognition as the first American orchestra to offer live recordings on iTunes.

In January of 2021, the MSO completed a years-long project to restore and renovate a former movie palace in the heart of downtown Milwaukee. The Bradley Symphony Center officially opened to audiences in October 2021. This project has sparked a renewal on West Wisconsin Avenue and continues to be a catalyst in the community.

The MSO’s standard of excellence extends beyond the concert hall and into the community, reaching more than 30,000 children and their families through its Arts in Community Education (ACE) program, Youth and Teen concerts, Family Series, and Meet the Music pre-concert talks. Celebrating its 35th year, the nationally recognized ACE program integrates arts education across all subjects and disciplines, providing opportunities for students when budget cuts may eliminate arts programming. The program provides lesson plans and supporting materials, classroom visits from MSO musician ensembles and artists from local organizations, and an MSO concert tailored to each grade level. This season, more than 5,900 students and 500 teachers and faculty are expected to participate in ACE both in person and in a virtual format.

NOTE: This press release was submitted to Urban Milwaukee and was not written by an Urban Milwaukee writer. While it is believed to be reliable, Urban Milwaukee does not guarantee its accuracy or completeness.