During the holiday season, you’ll find warmth, community and good cheer in all directions. The season can also be one of solitude and reflection. Regardless of your December plans, the 2024 Sound of the Season is upon us, and Colorado Public Radio is your home for winter’s favorite festivities.
You’ll find much to take comfort in over the next month: annual carols, solstice celebrations and returning traditions. CPR Classical’s 16th annual Carol Countdown® is well underway, and only you can make sure that your favorite carol makes it as far as possible in five rounds of voting, ending December 9. Kabin Thomas is taking the reins of hosting the Carol Countdown debuting December 10, so tune in to hear which carol takes the crown.
New and returning this season:
- Hear “The 12 Days of Carols” vignettes throughout each day beginning December 9. Then listen for Karla Walker's hourlong special featuring all 12, first airing December 22.
- Jean Inaba hosts an all-new "Holiday Pops" this season and also returns with some of the best in Colorado Christmas music from the CPR Performance Studio in “Comfort and Joy.”
- Revel in the quiet contemplation of the season with two hours of reflective music when Patty Painter-Wakefield hosts “December Solstice.”
- Starting December 25, explore the music and traditions of Hanukkah with “Eight Nights of Hanukkah,” hosted by Naomi Lewin, plus Colorado composer Ofer Ben-Amots and Monika Vischer return with “Hanukkah Reflections.”
- Celebrate the family-centered “Stories of Kwanzaa” beginning December 26.
- And we couldn't possibly ring in the new year without Jessie Jacobs hosting the "Beethoven Bash" and "New Year's Day from Vienna."
Read ahead to see the complete Sound of the Season schedule.
| Nov. 28 | All Day | Thanksgiving with CPR Classical: Find comfort and companionship in a cozy holiday soundtrack all day long. Celebrate gratitude with some of our favorite American music. |
| Nov. 30 | 7 a.m. | Holiday Baroque hosted by Monika Vischer: It's all the festivities of the season in 17th- and 18th-century style! |
| Nov. 30 | 5 p.m. | Colorado Symphony Holiday Brass: Warm and bright recordings from Colorado Symphony's brass players. |
| Dec. 1 | 10 a.m. | Holiday Baroque hosted by Monika Vischer: It's all the festivities of the season in 17th and 18th century-style! |
| Dec. 1 | 5 p.m. | St. Olaf Christmas Festival: The annual holiday concert featuring over 500 musicians and singers, brought to you from Northfield, Minnesota. |
| Dec. 2 | 9 a.m., 7 p.m. | Colorado Holiday Spotlight: Ars Nova + Denver Brass: Listen all week for holiday favorites from Colorado |
| Dec. 3 | 9 a.m., 7 p.m. | Colorado Holiday Spotlight: Colorado Children's Choir: Listen to highlights in the morning and enjoy a rebroadcast of the entire 2023 concert with Kabin Thomas at 7 p.m. |
| Dec. 4 | 9 a.m., 7 p.m. | Colorado Holiday Spotlight: Canto Deo & United States Air Force Academy Band |
| Dec. 4 | 1 p.m. | Tchaikovsky’s "Nutcracker": The complete music to Tchaikovsky's iconic final ballet. Join in the adventures of Clara and dance with sugar plum fairies. |
| Dec. 5 | 9 a.m., 7 p.m. | Colorado Holiday Spotlight: Colorado Symphony highlights |
| Dec. 6 | 9 a.m., 7 p.m. | Colorado Holiday Spotlight: Baroque Chamber Orchestra of Colorado & St. Martin's Chamber Choir |
| Dec. 6 | 3 p.m. | UPDATED for 2024! Holiday Pops with Jean Inaba: fresh, fun and festive! An hour of dazzling Hollywood superstars and the nation’s favorite pops orchestras. |
| Dec. 7 | 11 a.m. | The 2024-25 Metropolitan Opera season begins! Strauss: "Die Frau ohne Schatten" LIVE: Get swept away to the mythical world of Keikobad, the king of the spirits. |
| Dec. 7 | 5 p.m. | Comfort & Joy with Jean Inaba: Holiday hits from Colorado performers and ensembles in the CPR Performance Studio. |
| Dec. 8 | 12 p.m. | At Home with Sphere: Highlights from the holiday collection from Denver’s Sphere Ensemble. |
| Dec. 8 | 3 p.m. | Tchaikovsky’s "Nutcracker": The complete music to Tchaikovsky's iconic final ballet. Join in the adventures of Clara and dance with sugar plum fairies. |
| Dec. 9 | Various times | 12 Days of Carols: Listen throughout the day for the fascinating stories behind some of the season's favorite carols. |
| Dec. 9 | 10 a.m. | Comfort & Joy with Jean Inaba: Holiday hits from Colorado performers and ensembles in the CPR Performance Studio. |
| Dec. 10 | 7 a.m. | Carol Countdown 2024 with Kabin Thomas: Three hours of Colorado’s favorite Christmas carols, as chosen by you! The culmination of this year's annual listener-selected favorites. |
| Dec. 10 | 6 p.m. | The Ballad of the Brown King: Margaret Bonds's cantata with text by Langston Hughes, who felt inspired to “reinforce the image of African participation in the Nativity story.” |
| Dec. 11 | 3 p.m. | UPDATED for 2024! Holiday Pops with Jean Inaba: fresh, fun and festive! An hour of dazzling Hollywood superstars and the nation’s favorite pops orchestras. |
| Dec. 11 | 7 p.m. | St. Olaf Christmas Festival: The annual holiday concert featuring over 500 musicians and singers, brought to you from Northfield, Minnesota. |
| Dec. 12 | 3 p.m. | Colorado Symphony Holiday Brass: Warm and bright recordings from Colorado Symphony's brass players. |
| Dec. 12 | 6 p.m. | Non-Holiday Essential Classics: Need a break from the carols? Six hours of your favorite classical hits. |
| Dec. 13 | 5 p.m. | Tchaikovsky’s "Nutcracker": The complete music to Tchaikovsky's iconic final ballet. Join in the adventures of Clara and dance with sugar plum fairies. |
| Dec. 14 | 8 a.m. | Carol Countdown 2024 with Kabin Thomas: Three hours of Colorado’s favorite Christmas carols, as chosen by you! The culmination of this year's annual listener-selected favorites. |
| Dec. 14 | 11 a.m. | The Metropolitan Opera: Tesori: "Grounded": The story of a pilot who transitions from flying planes to flying drones. It's the first opera by two-time Tony Award-winning Jeanine Tesori, commissioned by the Met. |
| Dec. 14 | 4 p.m. | Christmas with the Colorado Children's Chorale 2023 hosted by Kabin Thomas: A broadcast of last year's holiday concert at Boettcher Concert Hall in Denver. |
| Dec. 15 | 11 a.m. | Comfort & Joy with Jean Inaba: Holiday hits from Colorado performers and ensembles in the CPR Performance Studio. |
| Dec. 15 | 12 p.m. | George Frideric Handel's "Messiah": A classic recording of the entire masterwork. |
| Dec. 16 | 12 p.m. | Carol Countdown 2024 with Kabin Thomas: Three hours of Colorado’s favorite Christmas carols, as chosen by you! The culmination of this year's annual listener-selected favorites. |
| Dec. 16 | 4 p.m. | At Home with Sphere: Highlights from the holiday collection from Denver’s Sphere Ensemble. |
| Dec. 17 | 6 p.m. | UPDATED for 2024! Holiday Pops with Jean Inaba: fresh, fun and festive! An hour of dazzling Hollywood superstars and the nation’s favorite pops orchestras. |
| Dec. 18 | 8 a.m. | Tchaikovsky’s "Nutcracker": The complete music to Tchaikovsky's iconic ballet. Dance with sugar plum fairies and toy soldiers. |
| Dec. 19 | 4 p.m. | Carol Countdown 2024 with Kabin Thomas: Three hours of Colorado’s favorite Christmas carols, as chosen by you! The culmination of this year's annual listener-selected favorites. |
| Dec. 19 | 7 p.m. | December Solstice with Patty Painter-Wakefield: Honor the winter solstice and the changing of the season with two hours of music and midwinter reflection. |
| Dec. 20 | 1 p.m. | At Home with Sphere: Highlights from the holiday collection from Denver’s Sphere Ensemble. |
| Dec. 20 | 7 p.m. | “Kontakion on the Nativity of Christ”: Late Colorado composer and CU music professor Richard Toensing’s setting of ancient liturgical texts for the Christmas season. |
| Dec. 21 | 9 a.m. | December Solstice with Patty Painter-Wakefield: Honor the winter solstice and the changing of the season with two hours of music and midwinter reflection. |
| Dec. 21 | 11 a.m. | The Metropolitan Opera: Mozart's "Magic Flute" LIVE: Enter the famous world of Prince Tamino and Papageno in a special holiday presentation of this abridged English-language version of Mozart's masterpiece. |
| Dec. 21 | 1:05 p.m. | Essential Christmas with Jessie Jacobs: Your home for the Christmas hits! Recognizable carols and holiday tunes during four hours of holiday hits. Singing along is encouraged. |
| Dec. 21 | 5 p.m. | December Solstice with Patty Painter-Wakefield: Honor the winter solstice and the changing of the season with two hours of music and midwinter reflection. |
| Dec. 22 | 6 a.m. | Sing! for the Holidays with Patty Painter-Wakefield: The warmth and light of choral music on Sunday mornings, featuring "The Ballad of the Brown King," Margaret Bonds's cantata set to text by Langston Hughes, who felt inspired to “reinforce the image of African participation in the Nativity story.” |
| Dec. 22 | 12 p.m. | UPDATED for 2024! Holiday Pops with Jean Inaba: fresh, fun and festive! An hour of dazzling Hollywood superstars and the nation’s favorite pops orchestras. |
| Dec. 22 | 3 p.m. | 12 Days of Carols with Karla Walker: Hear an hour-long special featuring all 12 vignettes about some of your favorite carols. |
| Dec. 22 | 4 p.m. | Menotti: "Amahl and the Night Visitors": Gian Carlo Menotti’s 1951 one-act opera inspired by the 15th century painting "The Adoration of the Magi." |
| Dec. 22 | 5 p.m. | St. Olaf Christmas Festival: The annual holiday concert featuring over 500 musicians and singers, brought to you from Northfield, Minnesota. |
| Dec. 23 | 8 a.m. | Benjamin Britten's "Ceremony of Carols": A short masterpiece of simple beauty and innocence composed by outspoken pacifist Benjamin Britten during the horrors of World War II. |
| Dec. 23 | 1 p.m. | 12 Days of Carols with Karla Walker: Hear an hour-long special featuring all 12 vignettes about some of your favorite carols. |
| Dec. 23 | 6 p.m. | Comfort & Joy with Jean Inaba: Holiday hits from Colorado performers and ensembles in the CPR Performance Studio. |
| Dec 24 | 8 a.m. | LIVE! Festival of Nine Lessons & Carols: Join in the annual worldwide, Christmas Eve broadcast live from King’s College in Cambridge, England. |
| Dec. 24 | 12 p.m. | Tchaikovsky’s "Nutcracker": The complete music to Tchaikovsky's iconic final ballet. Join in the adventures of Clara and dance with sugar plum fairies. |
| Dec. 24 | 6 p.m. | A Candlelight Christmas: Share a quiet, sacred evening of Christmas music with CPR Classical. It's like the special moment of sharing "Silent Night" during a midnight service, but all evening long. |
| Dec. 25 | 7:55 a.m., 5 p.m. | Eight Nights of Hanukkah: Host Naomi Lewin shares some of the magic of the Jewish festival of lights. Hear Hanukkah music, light the menorah and explore the story of the holiday. |
| Dec. 25 | 8 a.m. | 12 Days of Carols with Karla Walker: Hear an hour-long special featuring all 12 vignettes about some of your favorite carols. |
| Dec. 25 | 9 a.m. | Carol Countdown 2024 with Kabin Thomas: Three hours of Colorado’s favorite Christmas carols, as chosen by you! The culmination of this year's annual listener-selected favorites. |
| Dec. 25 | 12 p.m. | UPDATED for 2024! Holiday Pops with Jean Inaba: fresh, fun and festive! An hour of dazzling Hollywood superstars and the nation’s favorite pops orchestras. |
| Dec. 25 | 1 p.m. | Christmas with the Colorado Children's Chorale 2023 hosted by Kabin Thomas: A broadcast of last year's holiday concert at Boettcher Concert Hall in Denver. |
| Dec. 25 | 3 p.m. | Hanukkah Reflections: Music celebrating Jewish traditions at Hanukkah. Monika Vischer is joined by Colorado composer Ofer Ben-Amots. |
| Dec. 26 - Jan. 1 | 7 a.m., 3 p.m. | Stories of Kwanzaa: A celebration of community and family on CPR Classical through African American music and culture, daily through January 1. |
| Dec. 26 - Jan. 1 | 8 a.m., 4 p.m. | Eight Nights of Hanukkah: Host Naomi Lewin shares some of the magic of the Jewish festival of lights. Hear Hanukkah music, light the menorah, and explore the story of the holiday, daily through January 1. |
| Dec. 27 | 10 a.m. | Hanukkah Reflections: Music celebrating Jewish traditions at Hanukkah. Monika Vischer is joined by Colorado composer Ofer Ben-Amots. |
| Dec. 28 | 11 a.m. | The Metropolitan Opera: Humperdinck's "Hansel & Gretel": A magical take on the classic fairy tale by the Grimm brothers. |
| Dec. 28 | 4 p.m. | Itzhak Perlman’s Hanukkah Radio Party: Hear favorite Hanukkah recordings and the story of the Jewish festival of lights, hosted by the famous violinist. |
| Dec. 30 | 10 a.m. | Itzhak Perlman’s Hanukkah Radio Party: Hear favorite Hanukkah recordings and the story of the Jewish festival of lights, hosted by the famous violinist. |
| Dec. 31 | 5:30 p.m. | Beethoven Bash with Jessie Jacobs: A countdown to the New Year featuring all nine Beethoven symphonies. Reflect on the challenges and successes of the previous year and celebrate the new with this CPR Classical tradition, including the start of “Ode to Joy” from Symphony No. 9 at midnight! |
| Jan. 1 | 9 a.m. | New Year’s Day from Vienna: Waltzes and polkas and marches, oh my! Celebrate the New Year from the Musikverein! Join the Vienna Philharmonic in this annual tradition reaching millions around the world. Conducted by Riccardo Muti. |
Your holiday listening and beyond
Hear CPR Classical by clicking “Listen Live” at the top on this website, or download the Colorado Public Radio app. Listen on your radio to CPR Classical at 88.1 FM in Denver, at radio signals around Colorado. You can also tell your smart speaker to “Play CPR Classical."
