KISU-FM invites listeners to celebrate with us this holiday season! Tune in for a range of special programs from December 21st through January 1, 2021. A full list of holiday programs and air time are listed below:
Jazz Piano Christmas 36 December 22 at 7:000 pm
Join us for a twist on the classics you love! This year, the holiday tradition spotlights three of today's most prolific jazz pianists: REDWOOD, Cory Henry, and NEA Jazz Master Kenny Barron. Felix Contreras hosts.
Echoes Winter SolsticeDecember 22 at 9:00 pm
Echoes’ John Diliberto creates a two-hour soundscape of snow shrouded trees, silent saguaro cacti 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.
Mountain Stage Holiday SpecialDecember 23 at 7:00 pm
From the heartfelt to the humorous, Mountain Stage looks back at the songs and stories that remind us of this special time of year. Larry Groce hosts. Join Mountain Stage host Larry Gross for an hour filled with beautiful music to mark the season. The show features special guests Holly Cole, Joan Baez, Bruce Cockburn, Loudon Wainwright III, The Roches, Kathy Mattea and more. All performances were recorded live on the Mountain Stage.
Festivo Alt Latino: Cantigas In ConcertDecember 24 at 7:00 pm
Hear the healing and uplifting power of the human voice with the Washington, D.C.-based group, Cantigas. The group's 25 members assembled in NPR's Studio 1 in front of a live audience to present an eclectic mix of songs and rhythms from Mexico, Spain, Venezuela, Brazil, Argentina, Peru, Cuba and Puerto Rico–the home country of its artistic director, Diana Sáez. From folk to sacred to contemporary sounds, Cantigas presents a broader view of Latin music for audiences around the country through sophisticated vocal interpretations and by also reaching back into history to embrace choral traditions brought to and developed in the "New World." Hosted by Felix Contreras
Tinsel Tales: NPR Christmas FavoritesDecember 25 at 8:00 pm
This program features 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. Hosted by Lynn Neary.
Christmas with Morehouse and Spelman Glee ClubsDecember 25 at 10:00 am
One of the great holiday traditions in America, the choirs of Morehouse and Spelman Colleges -- two of the most prestigious historically black institutions in the nation -- get together to present a spine-tingling concert program. This encore presentation features the best works of the last several years. It's a joyous celebration of the schools' tradition of singing excellence, with their trademark mixture of spirituals and carols. Korva Coleman hosts.
Echoes Christmas EpisodesDecember 24 at 10:00 pm
It’s not your shopping mall Christmas carols. We’ll feature music that you won’t hear waiting in line for Santa Claus. It’s two hours of seasonal music that's cool and chilled, on an Echoes Christmas.
A Choral Christmas With Stile AnticoDecember 25 at 11:00 am
Celebrate Christmas with the sound of soaring voices. Stile Antico, the award winning choir from London, pays a visit to St. Paul’s church on Harvard Square for a concert of radiant sacred music for the Christmas season by the most acclaimed composers of the renaissance. Hear the group’s luminous blend of voices sing the intricately woven music of Thomas Tallis and William Byrd. Hosted by Cathy Fuller of WGBH. Presented by NPR Music.
Jazz Night In America: A Holiday CelebrationDecember 25 at 6:00 pm
Jazz Night in America provides the perfect complement of swinging holiday classics featuring The Sherman Irby sextet recorded live at Dizzy's Club at Jazz At Lincoln Center. . Christian McBride hosts.
ISU Onstage with ISU Choirs Holiday PerformanceDecember 25 at 7:00 pm*
The annual holiday performance of the ISU Choirs, led by director of choirs at ISU Dr. Scott Anderson. Due to COVID precautions, Dr. Anderson had to significantly adjust how the choirs rehearsed and performed, maximizing physical distancing, and utilizing an innovative mask designed by piano professor Dr. Kori Bond that was more conducive to singing. The choirs are accompanied by pianist Natalia Lauk. *Please note, due to the length of this program our start time will be approximately 6:53 pm
Alternative School Christmas ShowDecember 25 at 8:00 pm
Join host CJ Morrison for an hour of holiday-themed alternative music from the 80s and 90s!
A Season’s GriotDecember 26 at 6:00 pm
Public radio's only nationally syndicated Kwanzaa program. Hosted for 25 years by acclaimed storyteller Madafo Lloyd Wilson, this annual one-hour special captures the tales and traditions of African American and African peoples. The show’s poet laureate, Beverly Burnette, and other members of the Season’s Griot family return with familiar and favorite elements of Griot.
All Songs Considered for the Holidays 2020December 28 at 7:00 pm
For the first holiday extravaganza in 2012 (at a snow-covered cabin in the woods), nearly all of the invited guests canceled. The party was a lovable flop, but it launched a tradition that’s continued since, including trips to Bermuda, the north pole and even outer space. For this holiday party, Bob and Robin return to the cozy cabin where it all began. The special guests include Taylor Swift, Jenny Lewis, Tarriona "Tank" Ball, Lucy Dacus and more. What could possibly go wrong?
Sinatra: The New Year's Concert Special December 31 at 7:00 pm
A one hour concert retrospective, assembling some of Frank Sinatra's most memorable and cherished concert recordings. This concert retrospective takes listeners on a three decade ride around the U.S. with Sinatra captured on-stage with Count Basie and Quincy Jones at the famed Sands in Las Vegas (1966); Frank's 1971 "retirement concert" at the Ahmanson Theatre in Los Angeles; his 1974 "Main Event" tour stop in Philadelphia's Centrum and his 1987 concert at Reunion Arena in Dallas. Host Jim Raposa also includes rare and exclusive interviews with Frank Sinatra, songwriter Sammy Cahn, Quincy Jones and more. This is a formal, yet fun, black tie New Year's celebration that your audience will remember all year long
NPR’s Toast to the NationDecember 31 at 8:00 pm
An NPR tradition every New Year's Eve since the 1970s, Toast of the Nation is the perfect audio complement for the occasion. It's festive jazz you can party to, all night long, even on lockdown. The line-up is almost confirmed and it’s sure to be a good time, even without the big audiences.
New Year’s Day from Vienna from NPRJanuary 1 from 9:00 to 11:00 am
The ever popular annual New Year’s Day Concert will be performed by the Wiener Philharmoniker under the baton of Maestro Riccardo Muti. You'll hear your favorite waltzes, polkas and more -- a great way to start off 2021. Hosted by WBUR's Lisa Mullins.
