What Makes It Great? with Rob Kapilow - Dreaming of a Jewish Christmas

“It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year,” “Let it Snow, Let it Snow, Let it Snow,” “White Christmas,” “The Christmas Song,” “Baby, it’s Cold Outside,” “Santa Baby,” “Silver Bells,” “Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer,” “Do You Hear What I Hear?” “Holly Jolly Christmas,” and “Winter Wonderland” are not only among the most popular Christmas songs ever written, they’re among the most popular songs ever written. These songs have become the core repertoire—the soundtrack if you will—of the world’s most widely celebrated Christian holiday—and they were all written by Jewish composers!

The story of how this came to be is a remarkable tale of immigrant outsiders who rejected their parents’ European pasts, embraced Tin Pan Alley, Broadway, and Hollywood, and began to write the soundtrack to America’s dreams. It is a rich story involving pogroms, prejudice, poverty, immigration, assimilation, and the powerful creative imaginations of an extraordinary group of songwriters. A story that over the course of the program will completely change the way you think about and hear some of the world’s most beloved songs. 

Kapilow will be joined by vocalists Michael Winther and Gabrielle Stravelli and Massachusetts' own Labyrinth Choir, Dr. Anita Kupriss, director.

What Makes It Great? is sponsored by
AMY & JOSHUA BOGER