All dials will be tuned to ‘festive’, with classic favourites on Sunday Miscellany Live at Christmas with the RTÉ Concert Orchestra on Radio 1 and Christmas movie tunes and musical classics take over for Movies and Musicals Christmas with Aedín Gormley on RTÉ lyric fm.
For something new and different, radio listeners are in for a Christmas Eve treat with RTÉ Concert Orchestra Presents: Christmas Eve bringing the orchestra together with very special guest John Grant, Derry songwriter Soak and – for their first orchestral outing – indie rockers Pillow Queens for a collection of original arrangements of classic carols and new material.
For a review of the year in arts, Arena on RTÉ Radio 1 will take a look back at highlights from 2022 in movies, music, books and television and at gems to look out for in 2023. Arena also brings a two-part special celebration of iconic film music in Movie Music Masters recorded at the NCH with the RTÉ Concert Orchestra and presented by Seán Rocks.
Younger listeners are in for a treat when RTÉjr’s Séamus the dog takes over as presenter on RTÉlyric fm 26th and 27th December for Séamus Ar Maidin. He’ll be delving into performances of Christmassy delights like The Snowman and The Carnival of the Animals (narrated by Marty and performed by the RTÉ CO), the story of Tubby the Tuba and Prokofiev’s Peter and the Wolf (narrated as Gaeilge by Aedín Gormley and performed by the RTÉ CO) to keep early risers amused on the holiday mornings.
On RTÉ One, A Note for Nature is a beautifully crafted confluence of nature documentary, music and spoken word performance. Part celebration, part call for help as the natural world struggles, it reveals some of Ireland’s most fragile landscapes and the beleaguered animals struggling to survive there through exquisite nature film and with music from the RTÉ Concert Orchestra with Niamh Regan, Tolü Makay, Clare Sands & Susan O’Neill, Maria Doyle Kennedy; Christy Moore, Iarla Ó Lionáird and more.
Staying in the wilds, Tommy Tiernan’s Epic West is a two-part documentary exploration of Ireland’s West – a journey through the Irish imagination, a tapestry of stories mapping the intersections between landscape, mythology, history on the one hand and art and culture on the other. Dancing in the Moonlight – The RTÉ Concert Orchestra plays the music of Thin Lizzy – documentary concert filmsees the incredible music of Thin Lizzy and Phil Lynott performed by the RTÉ Concert Orchestra and guests Mundy, Jack O’Rourke, Wallis Bird, Tom Dunne, Shobsy and Jess Kav. A live concert filmed in the historic surrounds of Collins Barracks last summer, this feature length film captures the concert along with great insights from the performers, musicians, and people who were close to Phil and the band.
Other cultural icons are celebrated in Francis Bacon, The Outsider – an RTÉ Onedocumentaryauthored by U2’s Adam Clayton and Micheál Ó Súilleabháin: Between Worlds which celebrates the life and work of a man who lived between classical music and traditional music.
In live performances, audiences can enjoy the RTÉ Concert Orchestra in a series of concerts through the festive season: Christmas Big Band at the NCH on Tuesday 6th December, The RTÉ Concert Orchestra Presents Christmas Extravaganza with Guy Barker at the Helix on Monday 19th December and New Year’s Eve Gala at 2200 on 31st December at the NCH (details below).
SCHEDULE DETAILS BELOW
RTÉ One – HIGHLIGHTS
Tommy Tiernan’s Epic West : 2 x 50min : 7th & 14th December at 2135 on RTÉ One
Ireland’s West has always been a place apart. It has inspired countless artists, writers and thinkers. It is a place where both our dreams and our nightmares, as a nation, are at their most vivid. Presented by Tommy Tiernan, this two-part series is a journey through the Irish imagination, a tapestry of stories mapping the intersections between landscape, mythology, history on the one hand and art and culture on the other. A Crossing The Line production.
Francis Bacon, The Outsider : 1x 50min : 15th December at 2215 on RTÉ One
A new diary reveals an unrecorded chapter in Francis Bacon’s life. U2’s Adam Clayton, a huge admirer of Frances Bacon, retraces a trip Bacon took to Ireland in 1929, with his new friend and diarist, Eric Allden, painting a fresh picture of Bacon’s relationship with the land of his birth. A Mount Venus production.
Micheál Ó Súilleabháin: Between Worlds : 1 x 50min : 20th December at 2215 on RTÉ One
Micheál was a man who lived between worlds – between classical music and traditional music. Through thought-provoking interviews with his family, both his wives, contemporaries and former students, this documentary unearths his personal and professional story and just how much he achieved for Ireland both musically and culturally. A Red Shoe production.
A Note for Nature : 1 x 50min : 26th December at 1825 on RTÉ One
A Note for Nature is a celebration and a call for help. Through performances from Christy Moore, Clare Sands & Susan O’Neill, Alannah Thornburgh, Niamh Regan, Maria Doyle Kennedy, Iarla Ó Lionáird, This is How We Fly, Tolü Makay and the RTÉ Concert Orchestra; through passionate advocacy spoken word, we reveal some of Ireland’s most fragile landscapes and the beleaguered animals that, somehow, manage to survive there. A Crossing The Line production.
Dancing in the Moonlight – The RTÉ Concert Orchestra plays the music of Thin Lizzy : 28th December at 2125 on RTÉ One
Feature documentary concert film capturing a unique concert of the music Thin Lizzy & Phil Lynott at Collins Barracks in Dublin. With performance by the RTÉ Concert Orchestra and special guests including Mundy, Jack O’Rourke, Wallis Bird, Tom Dunne, Shobsy, the film includes great insights from the performers, musicians, and people who were close to Phil and the band.
RTÉ RADIO 1 – HIGHLIGHTS
Céilí House : 17th December at 2100 on RTÉ Radio 1
A special programme featuring the Blackwater Céilí Band recorded at the Dún Uladh Cultural Centre in Omagh.
The Rolling Wave : 18th December at 2100 on RTÉ Radio 1
A special programme marking the 50th anniversary of the Tommy Potts’ iconic album The Liffey Banks.
Sunday Miscellany Live at Christmas with the RTÉ Concert Orchestra:
Pt 1 : 18th December at 0910 on RTÉ Radio 1
Pt 2 : 25th December at 0910 on RTÉ Radio 1
Recorded at the National Concert Hall, the annual live concert is a festive highlight. Guests include Paul Howard, Declan Kiberd, Edel Coffey, Kathleen MacMahon, John Toal, Tim Carey, Róisín Ó Reilly, Connor McKeon, Trú and Úna Walsh performing alongside the RTÉ Concert Orchestra, conducted by Gavin Maloney.
The RTÉ Concert Orchestra Presents: Christmas Eve : 24th December at 1330 on RTÉ Radio 1
The RTÉ Concert Orchestra with very special guest John Grant, Derry songwriter Soak and indie rockers Pillow Queens in a seasonal programme of classic carols, as well as brand new arrangements of original material.
Arena : Review of the Year in Arts : 27th December at 1900 on RTÉ Radio 1
An Arena special with panel review of the TV, Movies, Books, Music highlights in 2022 and a look forward for gems to watch out for in 2023.
Arena : Movie Music Masters
Pt 1 : 2nd January at 1900 on RTÉ Radio 1
Pt 2 : 3rd January at 1900 on RTÉ Radio 1
A two-part special from the National Concert Hall with the RTÉ Concert Orchestra and presented by Sean Rocks celebrates movie music masterpieces from masters of the genre Ennio Morricone, John Barry, Thomas Newman and Michael Giacchino.
New Year Miscellany : 1st January at 0910 on RTÉ Radio 1
A special New Year Miscellany with scripts from novelists Niamh Campbell and Neil Hegarty, memoirist Barbara Scully, theatre director Conor Hanratty and more
RTÉ lyric fm – HIGHLIGHTS
RTE lyric Live: Handel’s Messiah : 23rd December at 1900 on RTÉ lyric fm
The National Symphony Orchestra, National Symphony Chorus and soloists, under conductor Nicholas McGegan, perform Handel’s oratorio “Messiah” with Máire Flavin (soprano), Avery Amoreau (contralto), Catherine Wyn-Rodgers (alto), James Oxley (tenor), Stephan Loges (bass-baritone).
Movies and Musicals : 24th December at 1300 on RTÉ lyric fm
Plenty of festive Christmas movie music and a wonderful selection box of seasonal favourites – “Swingin’ on Broadway” with The National Symphony Orchestra, arranged and conducted by Brian Byrne, featuring Anna-Jane Casey, Matt Ford, Lucia Evans, and William Byrne as star vocalists; a celebration of the great songwriters of Broadway musicals including Rodgers and Hammerstein’s South Pacific, Leonard Bernstein and Stephen Sondheim’s West Side Story and more.
Opera Night – Paper Boat the Opera by Elaine Agnew : 24th December at 1900 on RTÉ lyric fm.
This Opera Night Special brings you the radio premiere of a new community opera by Elaine Agnew. Before we hear the opera itself, a special Lyric Feature, Paper Boat Sets Sail looks at how this incredible creative collaboration between over 140 people, from across Co. Galway, came into being. Commissioned by Music for Galway, Paper Boat is the first opera collaboration between Jessica Traynor, who wrote the libretto and composer, Elaine Agnew. It tells the story of three strangers who arrive at the doors of St. Nicholas’ Collegiate Church seeking sanctuary. Four professional singers are joined by chorus, youth chorus, brass band and a 36-piece orchestra, all under the artistic direction of Mark Duley and conducted by Sinead Hayes.
Sounds Aglow with David Brophy : 26th December at 1600 on RTÉ lyric fm
For the day after Christmas Day, as the world calms; travel with David Brophy on a celestial journey as he shares his musical selections both sacred and secular from traditions across the globe to satisfy the soul on St Stephen’s Day. This two hours of music will soothe and surprise as David explores the myriad of ways in which humans mark this special season through the medium of music.
Séamus Ar Maidin : 26th & 27th December at 0800 on RTÉ lyric fm
RTÉjr’s Séamus the dog takes over Marty Whelan’s studio to become a classical music presenter for the holidays. Séamus explores the magical stories and music of The Snowman, The Carnival of the Animals, Tubby The Tuba and Prokofiev’s Peter and the Wolf as Gaeilge – ‘Peadar agus an Mac Tíre’.
RTÉ CONCERT ORCHESTRA – HIGHLIGHTS
Christmas Big Band : 6th December at 2000 at the National Concert Hall
RTÉ Concert Orchestra Big Band is joined by Dana Masters and multi-talented pianist/conductor/ arranger Cormac McCarthy for a Christmas special. A rare chance to hear a live performance of Duke Ellington’s reworking of the Nutcracker into a jazz classic, Hark! The Herald Angels Sing and Let It Snow get the full Gordon Goodwin big- band treatment and mellow Christmas classics including famous Ella and Sinatra versions.
The RTÉ Concert Orchestra Presents Christmas Extravaganza with Guy Barker : 19th December at 2000 at the Helix
Amazing arranger & conductor Guy Barker swings into Christmas at the Helix with the RTÉ Concert Orchestra & Big Band. Top jazz artists join them: vocalists Tommy Blaize of Strictly Come Dancing, Broadway and West End sensation Marisha Wallace and the great Jess Kav as well as the extraordinary Giacomo Smith on clarinet/saxophone, his first time performing in Dublin. The concert will be broadcast on RTÉ lyric fm on 30th December at 1900
New Year’s Eve Gala : 31st December at 2200 at the National Concert Hall
See in the New Year in the company of the RTÉ Concert Orchestra, top conductor David Brophy, West-End and Broadway star John Owen-Jones and award winning singer-actor Juliette Crosbie. It’ll be a very special night packed with favourites from the musicals, and the audience can sing in 2023 with Auld Lang Syne and a glass of complimentary bubbles.