Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Join WKU Public Radio for Our Wonderful Selection of Holiday Programs

We hope you'll make WKU Public Radio's lineup of Christmas and New Year's programs a part of your holiday tradition!

Thursday, Dec. 24

A Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols (live at 9 am central/10 eastern): Hosted by Michael Barone, this is a live stereo music and spoken-word broadcast from the chapel of King's College in Cambridge, England. The 30-voice King's College Choir performs the legendary Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols service of Biblical readings and music.

Pink Martini's Joy to the World: A Holiday Spectacular (11 am central/noon eastern): The internationally acclaimed “little orchestra" Pink Martini bedecks the airwaves with festive holiday songs from across the globe. From timeless classics to rarely heard gems, hear a multi-denominational, multi-cultural jubilee, overflowing with enough holiday spirit to warm your entire family. Hosted by All Things Considered’s Ari Shapiro, and co-produced by OPB and Murray Street Productions.

Jonathan Winters' A Christmas Carol (noon eastern/1 pm central): An updated version of a public radio tradition hosted by NPR's Susan Stamberg. Master comedian Jonathan Winters presents a distinctive reading of Dickens' holiday classic, with a special performing edition prepared by Dickens for his own presentations.

St. Olaf Christmas Festival (1 pm central/2 pm eastern): A service in song and word that has become one of the nation’s most cherished holiday celebrations. Tickets to the event, which takes place at St. Olaf College in Northfield, MN, are always gone months in advance. The festival includes hymns, carols, choral works, and orchestral selections celebrating the Nativity and featuring more than 500 student musicians who are members of five choirs and the St. Olaf Orchestra.

Credit NPR
Spelman Glee Club

Christmas with Morehouse and Spelman Glee Clubs (7 pm central/8 eastern): 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.

Christmas Day

St. Olaf Christmas Festival (9 am central/10 eastern): See description above

Christmas With the Owensboro Symphony Orchestra (11 am central/noon eastern): WKU Public Radio's Lee Stott hosts two hours of holiday classics featuring the Owensboro Symphony Orchestra, with conductor Nicolas Palmer.

A Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols (rebroadcast at 1 pm central/2 eastern): See description above.

New Year's Day

Credit NPR
New Year's Day from Vienna 2015

New Year's Day from Vienna 2016 (live at 10 am central/11 eastern): The Philharmonic presents its ever popular annual New Year's Day concert from the Golden Hall of the Musikverein in Vienna. You'll hear your favorite waltzes, polkas and more -- a festive way to start off the New Year. Presented by NPR Music and WGBH, Boston.