Inside SPAC's surprise holiday series announcement
SPAC President Chris Shiley walks us through this special music weekend.
SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY — A Celtic treasure of a Christmas and the jazzy Gen Z sounds of Stella Cole will ring in the holidays for SPAC’s December music series — going down at Skidmore’s stunning Arthur Zankel Music Hall this December (while the Spa Little Theater undergoes some incredible renovations). The announcement came as a bit of a surprise because of the reno, although the fabulous new shows bookend the already-sold-out (check here for any last remaining tix) Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center’s Bach Brandenburg Concertos.
“Three nights in a row!” says SPAC President Christopher Shiley. “It’s a beautiful venue with a beautiful acoustic, and all of the artists in this series are going to sound wonderful in that space. We’re excited to be there.”
Kicking off the holiday music weekend is Danú: An Emerald Isle Christmas on Friday, December 12, a group that Saratoga audiences last fell in love with in 2022 during a sold-out Sounds of the Season performance. “There’s just something about that Irish Celtic music at the holidays,” Shiley says. “It’s so beautiful and such a part of their tradition in Ireland. The musicians are amazing.”
The world-renowned Danú features musicians on flute, tin whistle, fiddle, button accordion and bouzouki — and works with local step-dancers for their performance. Vocals are in both Gaelic and English.
“The vocalist [Nell Ní Chróinín] has an exquisite voice,” Shiley says. “It’s just a really fun night with them — not to be missed.”
If you’re kicking yourself for missing the sold-out, Icelandic phenom Laufey when she brought the house down this summer with the Philadelphia Orchestra, Stella Cole: SNOW!’s Sunday matinee is for you. The 3 p.m. show stars social media sensation Cole, who Shiley says is referred to as a cross between Laufey and Michael Bublé.
“The younger generation, Gen Z, is infatuated with a vintage sound and feel, and Stella’s a 26-year-old jazz vocalist who speaks to that moment,” he says of Cole, who makes her debut Saratoga December 14 singing beloved holiday hits with a jazz trio. “Her voice will very much remind you of a Judy Garland. It’s really refreshing to see an artist of her age paying homage to this classic rep. What’s cool about this is that as it’s really sparking with this younger generation, the older generation of course loves that music as well.
“It’s this wonderful bridge between these two age groups.”
Tickets go on sale to the public at 10 a.m. October 20. For more info and to buy tickets, visit spac.org for Danū and Stella Cole.