Polaris Hall

Celebrate the season with a warm and nostalgic evening of holiday favorites featuring our renowned cello ensemble. From selections from Tchaikovsky’s Nutcracker to French Christmas music and beloved traditional carols, this festive concert invites audiences to gather in the glow of familiar sounds and seasonal cheer.

Trevor Fitzpatrick leads a swinging holiday follow-up featuring Duke Ellington’s jazz-infused reimagining of The Nutcracker, performed by six cellos and drums. This inventive take on a seasonal classic blends Tchaikovsky’s beloved melodies with Ellington’s unmistakable rhythmic brilliance.

Arcturus presents Janáček’s Mládí and Hindemith’s Septet. This program, featuring the winds and brass of 45th Parallel, pairs two masterpieces of musical maturity, written by composers at the height of their creative powers. Leoš Janáček’s Mládí (“Youth”), composed at age seventy during the same remarkable late-career period that produced the opera The Cunning Little Vixen, looks inward, recalling childhood with affection, humor, and vitality. Paul Hindemith’s Septet, written after World War II, looks outward, building a musical world from conversation, balance, and cooperation among its seven players. Though strikingly different in style, both works reflect the confidence of artists unconcerned with proving themselves. Instead, Janáček and Hindemith explore memory, community, and the power of individual voices coming together to create something greater than themselves – a perfect opportunity to showcase 45th Parallel’s performers and creative spirit. WORKS Leoš Janáček: MládíPaul Hindemith: Septet PERFORMERS Joe Berger, hornZach Galatis, fluteKai Rocke, bassoonJames Shields, clarinetKaren Wagner, oboe

mousai REMIX returns with a bold and imaginative chamber program: string quartets by Eleanor Alberga and Beethoven. Known for inventive programming and dynamic performance, this ensemble continues to champion collaboration, curiosity, and musical discovery. Eleanor Alberga’s String Quartet No. 2 takes listeners on a fast-moving and captivating musical journey. From a single idea heard at the very beginning, the music continually transforms itself, unfolding with energy, momentum, and unexpected turns. Rich in color, imagination, and expressive contrast, the quartet invites audiences into a world where familiar ideas reappear in surprising ways, creating an experience that feels both tightly connected and constantly evolving. Beethoven’s final string quartet takes listeners on a journey that is by turns playful, surprising, reflective, and triumphant. Full of rhythmic games, unexpected twists, and lively exchanges between the four musicians, the work delights in keeping audiences guessing before opening into moments of remarkable beauty and introspection. Centered around the famous question “Must it be?” and the emphatic response “It must be!”, this beloved masterpiece transforms uncertainty into confidence, ending with a spirit of joy, resilience, and celebration. WORKS Eleanor Alberga: String Quartet No. 2Beethoven: String Quartet No. 16 in F major, Op. 135 PERFORMERS Emily Cole, violinShin-young Kwon, violinJennifer Arnold, violaMarilyn de Oliveira, cello