The Magic of Christmas Rock: My Holiday Concert Tradition
/It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas.
Or is it?
This time of year is too liminal. Halloween is in the rearview, but it’s not quite close enough to the winter festive season to fully decorate. So, perhaps the way to ignite that cozy holiday fire within is to go and partake in seasonal events.
And I know of a show that’s one of a kind.
Electric Violins and laser lights. Photo Courtesy of the Trans SIberian Orchestra
The Trans-Siberian Orchestra
Ottawa doesn’t always make the list when it comes to “world tours.” I know this. But there is one band that makes a semi-regular stop to our city.
The Trans-Siberian Orchestra (TSO) came to Ottawa this year with “The Lost Christmas Eve,” one of several rotating Christmas-themed tours they undertake, including “Christmas Eve and Other Stories” and “The Ghosts of Christmas Eve.” While the concert date has now passed, they’re sure to swing around again.
Word of Mouth
Trans-Siberian Orchestra has one of those shows you never consider going to until it’s recommended by a friend who has been to one. Sure, I had heard some of their songs and even seen a few trailers for their concert. But it’s different when you hear directly from someone who has been to their live shows.
When I was still in high school, some fellow students in my music class sang the praises of TSO in concert. The enthusiasm with which they explained how good the TSO are sold me. So, my mom purchased tickets, and away we went.
One-of-a-Kind Show
It was the year 2010, and it was getting closer and closer to Christmas. In fact, the date was December 22nd (only three sleeps away). This was my first TSO concert, so my mom and I had no idea what to expect. A buzz was in the air as we made our way to our seats, just one section back from the stage. Beside us were veterans of TSO concerts, and wow, their anticipation was infectious. Before the show had even begun, my expectations had raised even higher.
Then, the lights went down, and the show began.
I had absorbed plenty of Christmas classics over my life, so, of course, I recognized the songs that TSO covered—but hearing those tunes in such a fresh, unexpected way? Pyrotechnics synchronized to loud electric instruments? It was bombastic. Enthralling. Synchronized light shows are at most concerts these days, but believe me when I say that the TSO long ago mastered the art of dazzlement and has only improved year over year.
Ah, Christmas, when towering walls of flame wash waves of heat over you and frenetic festive lasers dance displays over your head. I’m getting nostalgic just thinking about it.
Yet there were also calming, beautiful moments: acapella vocals that stick with your mind with the raw talent on display and artificial snow wafting over the crowd during slow, elegant waltzes.
A small hint of the kind of pyrotechnics Trans-Siberian Orchestra concerts are famous for. Photo Coutresy of the Trans-Siberian Orchestra
Still Not Sold?
The show is a story, not just a list of songs. I won’t get into spoilers, but there is a narrator and an entire plot that unfolds. “The Lost Christmas Eve” is just one of their stories. When going to their other shows, you can experience a new and different story. And that’s yet another incredible thing that stuck with me—experiencing not just a display of technology, talent, and performance but also an emotionally satisfying holiday story that, quite simply, puts you in the holiday spirit.
I remember that first time, on a late December evening, walking out of the Canadian Tire Centre (though I believe it was still called the Scotiabank Place back then), there was no doubt in my mind. “We’ve got to do this again!” I had said to my mom.
And we did. A new tradition formed.
Now, every time the TSO puts Ottawa as a stop on their tour, we jump to getting tickets. We went the following year in 2011 (which was the last time “The Lost Christmas Eve” was in Ottawa). In 2015, we went to see “The Ghosts of Christmas Eve” when it swung around. Every year that we can experience a TSO show, the holidays are made just that much brighter and more memorable.
For this year’s show, I was now the veteran TSO fan, eagerly helping to do my part, hyping the first timers filtering into what was sure to become a holiday memory like no other.
“The show seems too intense; I’m not sure I’ll like it.”
Rest assured, TSO has a well-paced show. They know how to build toward the biggest parts of the spectacle expertly. While many rave about the climax (and the trailers love showcasing the most energetic moments), the journey to get to those moments, the lulls and turns, is a part of the experience. They know how to put on a show with wide appeal.
A Quick Trailer (No Spoilers)
Some Final Thoughts
How does a rock concert put you in the Christmas mood? It just does. I think it’s the freshness. The new and exciting and loud take on Christmas classics. You need not be a fan of the Trans-Siberian Orchestra or need to have heard their Christmas albums. In fact, it may be a little cooler to experience seeing them without much knowledge. I didn’t own their albums before going that first time, but I collected their whole discography afterwards.
Remember Physical media like CDs? Photo: Hunter Brown
It's also noteworthy that TSO donates to a local charity for every show.
Once you experience it in person, TSO’s Christmas shows are sure to become a holiday tradition for you as well. Keep an eye and an ear out for this miraculous show returning to Ottawa. The more word-of-mouth support they get, the more often we’ll see this one-of-a-kind holiday spectacle venture to our fun city.
Hunter Leclerc Brown (he/him) is Kanien’kehá:ka (Mohawk), born and raised in Ottawa. He is a professional writing student at Algonquin College, class of 2025. A lifelong sci-fi nerd, gamer, and martial artist, he’s now an aspiring author.
You’ll find him most days with a coffee, a good book, and snuggling with his cats.
