SATURDAY DECEMBER 21 (Winter Solstice)
6:00 - 8:00 AM Solstice & Holiday San Juan Sunrise Stasia helps you ring in the Winter Solstice and the holidays ahead with a festive morning blend.
8:00 – 9:00 PM A Strange Brew Solstice Jim Belcher features an amalgamation of solstice songs for the first night of winter.
9:00 – 11:00 PM Paul Winter's Annual Winter Solstice Celebration Celebrate the return of the sun - and the warming of the earth with an exuberant feast of sound captured live in the majestic Cathedral of St. John the Divine. Hosted by WNYC's John Schaefer.
11:00 PM – 1:00 AM An Echoes Winter Solstice Get ready for the big chill as Host John Diliberto creates a soundscape of snow-shrouded trees, silent saguaro cactus and white out conditions. It’s a winter fantasy with no Christmas Carols, but a sleigh-full of music taking you into the celestial and chilled side of the season.
SUNDAY DECEMBER 22 (Hanukkah Begins)
7:00 – 8:00 PMCandles Burning Brightly A celebration of Chanukah, the Jewish Festival of Lights. Mindy Ratner hosts this holiday favorite and exploration of Chanukah foods and traditional activities - and plenty of music.
8:00 – 9:00 PM Hanukkah Lights A perennial NPR favorite, Hanukkah Lights features all new Hanukkah stories. written by Lynne Bronstein, R.L. Maizes, Susan J. Gordon, Jennifer Lang, and Kate Schmier. Read by hosts Susan Stamberg and Murray Horwitz.
MONDAY DECEMBER 23
7:00 – 8:00 PM Thistle & Shamrock - A Celtic Holiday Tradition Join Fiona Ritchie for a celebration of Christmas and the traditions of midwinter through festive songs, carols and the magical music of the season.
8:00 – 9:00 PM The Global Village – Holiday Special It’s a Global Village holiday extravaganza, featuring seasonal favorites done world music style and holiday songs from various corners of the globe. Highlights include the salsa Christmas classic Asalto Navideño, a favorite from Louis Armstrong, a tiny Nutcracker from the Modern Mandolin Quartet, a holiday favorite done punk-polka style by Brave Combo, and songs of the season from the Caribbean and New Orleans.
TUESDAY DECEMBER 24 (Christmas Eve)
1:00 – 4:00 PM KSUT Christmas Eve Music Blend w/ Stasia Lanier Join Stasia for an afternoon of holiday music to get primed for Christmas Eve.
7:00 – 9:00 PM Barrelhouse Blues: Christmas Blues Rob Rawls spins yule blues from Samantha Fish, BB King, Etta James, Sharon Jones, Keb’ Mo’ and many others.
9:00 – 10:00 PM Jazz Night In America: A Holiday Celebration Jazz Night in America brings you holiday classics from their past five seasons – featuring fresh arrangements and entertaining storytelling recorded live from Rose Theater in New York City. You'll hear the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra with Wynton Marsalis, plus special guest vocalists Catherine Russell and Kenny Washington. Christian McBride hosts.
10:00 – MIDNIGHT An Echoes Night Before Christmas Get the sugar plums dancing with an Echoes Night Before Christmas. It's a time when life seems suspended between the Christmas build-up and the explosion of Christmas morning. It's not your shopping Mall Christmas carols. We'll hear music from the Ornamental and Dark Noel albums, Jeff Johnson's "Winterfold" and Smoke Fairies' "Wild Winter." John Diliberto decorates your ears with seasonal music that's cool and chilled on an Echoes Night Before Christmas.
WEDNESDAY DECEMBER 25 (Christmas Day)
9:00 – 10:00 AM KSUT Christmas Day Music Blend
Jim Belcher spins an hour of yule tunes for Christmas morning.
10:00 – Noon A Christmas Carol w/ Patrick Stewart Patrick Stewart presents a distinctive reading of Dickens’ holiday classic.
Noon – 1:00 PM NPR’s Here & Now
1:00 – 2:00 PM All Songs Considered for the Holidays All Songs Considered hosts Bob Boilen and Robin Hilton decide to get away from it all with a holiday cruise to Bermuda. Along the way they meet a few special guests aboard the ship, including John Legend, Aloe Blacc, Steve Martin and the Steep Canyon Rangers, William Shatner, Lucius, Micky Dolenz of The Monkees and Rodney Crowell, who all try to share their own good cheer for the holidays.
2:00 – 3:00 PM The Big Tiny Desk Concert Holiday Special Celebrate the season with amazing holiday performances from The Tiny Desk Concert series including Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings, Steve Martin, Hanson, The Polyphonic Spree and more! Hosted by NPR Music frenemies Bob Boilen and Stephen Thompson.
3:00 – 4:00 PM Tinsel Tales: NPR Christmas Favorites The tradition continues - stories from the NPR archives that touch on the meaning of Christmas. David Sedaris, Bailey White, John Henry Faulk--these and other NPR voices, past and present, tell stories of the season.
