Joy: Christmas with The Tabernacle Choir

Over the years, Richard Elliott’s organ performances have become a much anticipated highlight of The Tabernacle Choir’s Christmas concerts. This year, Elliott created a spirited Christmas fantasia for organ and the Gabriel Trumpet Ensemble based on the 17th-century French carol “Bring a Torch, Jeanette, Isabella.”

Watch Broadway star Michael Maliakel perform "God Help the Outcasts" with The Tabernacle Choir and Orchestra. Written by 8-time Oscar winner Alan Menken and lyricist Stephen Schwartz, the song first made its first appearance in the 1996 animated feature 'The Hunchback of Notre Dame', loosely based on Victor Hugo’s 1831 novel.

Long beloved as a German Christmas carol, “O Jesulein süss” began appearing in English translation in the early 20th century. It was Anglican priest and liturgist Percy Dearmer, who arranged Bach’s harmonization of a solo song and recast it for four-part chorus in 1928, published as “O Little One Sweet.” Hear The Tabernacle Choir and Orchestra's beautiful interpretation, arranged by Mack Wilberg.

The beloved account of Jesus Christ’s birth found in the Gospel of St. Luke has long been the traditional centerpiece of The Tabernacle Choir’s Christmas concerts. In this year’s concert, Lesley Nicol’s narration of the Nativity is accompanied by an orchestral meditation by Mack Wilberg that incorporates musical motifs based on his arrangement of “O Little One Sweet.”

The tune for this popular Christmas song "Angels from the Realms of Glory" comes from the 18th-century French carol “Les Anges dans nos Campagnes.” In Mack Wilberg’s stirring arrangement,which traditionally features solos by the guest singer, (this year Broadway star Michael Maliakel) this carol has become the signature finale at The Tabernacle Choir’s Christmas concerts.

Actress Lesley Nicol narrates the true story of Victor Hugo, author of Les Misérables, and his wife hosting a Christmas feast for impoverished children. Brought to life by actors on stage, this heartwarming story celebrates the transformative power of love and compassion.