Seasonal sounds abound as holiday concerts fill calendar By: Alan Small Posted: 6:29 PM CST Monday, Nov. 27, 2023

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This article was published 27/11/2023 (698 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Some shoppers roll their eyes when department stores begin playing Christmas Muzak as soon as Remembrance Day poppies fall from their jackets.

Others are unable to suppress their joy when they first hear the songs of the season, whether they’re carols such as Silent Night or We Three Kings relating the story of Jesus Christ’s birth, Bing Crosby crooning White Christmas or dogs barking Jingle Bells.

“If somebody feels fantastic walking into a Christmas store and hearing all that Christmas music, and get in their car and they play Christmas (songs) for an entire month, whatever anybody needs to feel good about themselves and the holiday season, that’s great,” says harpist Janelle Nadeau, who leads a quartet for A Prairie Christmas Dec. 5 at the Club Regent Event Centre.

“If you don’t want to, you don’t need to.”

Count Nadeau among the former group. Christmas has been part of her December tradition ever since she first performed in front of an audience as a seven-year-old at the Sacred Heart of Jesus Roman Catholic Church in Fannystelle, about 55 kilometres west of Winnipeg.

Thirty years later, the principal harpist of the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra and Vancouver Opera leads a Baroque quartet that will perform carols from the past and present.

“There is something very special about it being dark, about it being the Christmas season,” Nadeau, 37, says.

“People are ready for their traditions.”

Performing at a church and a casino may be polar opposites, but she says warm holiday feelings reside in both venues, especially when she returns to Manitoba and gets to see friends and family again.

“It always feels like I’m home when I get to play for the people who live around here. They’re the first people who sat and listened to me and gave me space to perform,” she says.

While some city choral groups performed sacred songs of the season at concerts last weekend — choristers are busier than Santa’s elves in December — holiday-themed concerts and celebrations by a wide variety of artists begin to dominate the entertainment scene starting this week.

Here are some highlights:

Boney M featuring Liz Mitchell

Wednesday, 7 p.m., Club Regent Event Centre ($51.14-$80.54 at Ticketmaster)

For some, this German dance group packs as much of a nostalgic wallop as A Charlie Brown Christmas; its seasonal songs, such as Mary’s Boy Child, are almost as popular as its 1979 hit Rasputin. Mitchell, one of the group’s original singers, is one of several who hold rights to tour under the Boney M name. Winnipeg a cappella group Those Guys, who also headline a sold-out show at the West End Cultural Centre on Saturday, open the show.

Christmas With the Tenors

Friday, Dec. 1, 7 p.m. Club Regent Event Centre ($75.19-$107.54 at Ticketmaster)

The Tenors have become one of the country’s biggest holiday draws, and a new album, Christmas with the Tenors, only adds to their holiday attraction. The record includes 16 holiday favourites that showcase the quartet’s prodigious vocal abilities, including White Christmas, Do You Hear What I Hear? and Ave Maria. Only single tickets remained as of Monday, according to Ticketmaster’s website.

A Prairie Christmas with the Nadeau Ensemble

Dec. 5, 7 p.m. Club Regent Event Centre ($41.44-$52.19 at Ticketmaster)

Nadeau, who has performed alongside the likes of Andrea Bocelli, Diana Krall and Eddie Vedder, will lead four other musicians for performances of Baroque-era Christmas songs as well as classical twists on contemporary carols, using unconventional instruments such as the harmonium, the nyckelharpa and the hurdy-gurdy.

“I feel like we have a lovely blend of Christmas music that people know very well, mixed with pieces like O Come, O Come Emmanuel. That’s a 12-century Gregorian chant that people know very well but we make sure we put a twist on it so that it’s fresh while still respecting its roots,” Nadeau says.

Jess Moskaluke Winter Wonderland Tour

Dec. 7, 7 p.m., Club Regent Event Centre ($36.04-$46.79 at Ticketmaster)

The Juno Award-winning country singer is originally from Langenburg, Sask., population 1,165, and will perform songs from her newly released album, A Small Town Christmas, as well as her hits.

Elf in concert

Dec. 8, 7 p.m., and Dec. 9, 1 p.m., Centennial Concert Hall ($71.25-$110 at centennialconcerthall.com)

The Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra provided the warm and fuzzies when they accompanied the wintry Disney classic Frozen this past weekend; a separate company, Chicago-based Innovation Arts and Entertainment, has hired the orchestra to accompany Elf, the Christmas comedy that stars Will Ferrell as an overgrown Santa’s helper, along with James Caan, Zooey Deschanel, Ed Asner and Peter Dinklage.

The Small Glories: Songs for a Winter’s Night

Dec. 8, 8 p.m., West End Cultural Centre ($37.32 at wecc.ca and Eventbrite)

The Winnipeg duo Cara Luft and J.D. Edwards, whose 2020 album Assiniboine & the Red earned three Canadian Folk Music Awards, marks the third anniversary of its holiday concert. The twosome also perform the show at the Good Street Hall in Erickson, just south of Riding Mountain National Park, on Dec. 10.

JP Hoe Hoe Hoe Holiday Show

Dec. 8, 8 p.m., Burton Cummings Theatre (sold out)

The Winnipeg singer-songwriter’s annual show, a fundraiser for the Christmas Cheer Board, is a sellout year after year thanks to Hoe’s popularity and his ability to attract guest performers.

The afterparty at the Park Theatre (at 11 p.m.) gives people who were unable to get tickets for the annual Burt show to join in the fun, and includes more performances. Tickets are $10 at myparktheatre.com.

Serena Ryder Merry Myths Tour

Dec. 8, 7 p.m., Club Regent Event Centre ($45.74-$69.79 at Ticketmaster)

The 12-time Juno Award winner has released an old song with a new twist — I Saw Daddy Kissing Santa Claus — in time for the indie rocker’s winter tour, which includes holiday classics.

Amero Little Christmas

Dec. 9, Burton Cummings Theatre ($40.50-$51.75 at Ticketmaster)

Don Amero’s third-annual holiday concert is billed as a mix between a Michael Bublé special and Tom Jackson’s Huron Carole; expect special guests to join the Cree and Métis country singer and children’s author.

The Color

Dec. 10, Bethel Mennonite Church, 465 Stafford, St., ($15 at thecoloronline.com)

The Manitoba Christian-pop trio of Jordan Janzen, Larry Abrams and Tyson Unrah also bring their Colorful Christmas Tour to the PW Enns Centennial Concert Hall in Winkler on Dec. 9.

Laila Biali and Jane Bunnett

Dec. 13, 7:30 p.m. Crescent Arts Centre, 525 Wardlaw Ave. ($32.70 at jazzwinnipeg.com)

Two Canadian jazz stars, pianist and vocalist Laila Biali and saxophonist Jane Bunnett, join forces for Wintersongs and Holiday Classics, an evening of sacred and secular songs with unique arrangements.

Winnipeg Jazz Orchestra’s Elvis and the Grinch

Dec. 14, 1 p.m. and 7:30 p.m., West End Cultural Centre ($42, $20 for students or 30 and under at winnipegjazzorchestra.com)

Winnipeg’s big band blends the Blue Christmas vibes of Elvis Presley with music from the 1957 Yuletide animated special How the Grinch Stole Christmas!

Steve Bell Advent Concert

Dec. 15, 7:30 p.m, West End Cultural Centre ($32.50 at stevebell.com)

The songwriter, guitarist and storyteller has earned accolades around the world for his folk-music interpretations of biblical verses. Bell will celebrate lesser-heralded Christian events, such as the Advent and Epiphany, as well as Christmas itself. He also performs at Grace Mennonite Church in Steinbach Dec. 14 at 7:30 p.m.

Rockin’ Elvis Christmas with Rory Allen

Dec. 15, 7 p.m., Club Regent Event Centre ($41.14-$52.19 at Ticketmaster)

An 11-piece band will back the Saskatchewan-based Elvis tribute artist, who will don the jumpsuit and bring a dash of Vegas glitz to the city’s holiday scene.

Red Moon Road: Simple Kind of Christmas

Dec. 16, 8 p.m., West End Cultural Centre ($32.37 at wecc.ca)

The Winnipeg trio of Sheena Rattai, Daniel Jordan and Daniel Péloquin-Harris will perform songs from their 2020 album A Simple Kind of Christmas during a whirlwind tour that includes stops at Knox Church in Kenora (Dec. 7); Carman United Church (Dec. 8); Lucky Luc’s in St. Pierre-Jolys (Dec. 10); Manitou Opera House (Dec. 15); and Taste of Spice in Portage la Prairie (Dec. 17).

Crash Test Dummies: Jingle All the Way

Dec. 21, 7 p.m. Club Regent Event Centre, 7 p.m. ($45.74-$69.79 at Ticketmaster)

One of Winnipeg’s biggest musical success stories rounds out the holiday concert calendar by performing songs from their 2002 holiday record along with their many pop hits.

Alan.Small@winnipegfreepress.com

X: @AlanDSmall