PORTLAND — The Portland Symphony Orchestra has reimagined a beloved holiday tradition to create the Magic of Christmas at Home online special. The Magic of Christmas at Home will be available to watch on demand beginning Tuesday, Dec. 1, and will be available through Thursday, Dec. 31.

The special concert will be led by PSO Music Director Eckart Preu, with guests Alyson Cambridge, James Kennerley, the Magic of Christmas Chorus, the Portland Ballet and the Pihcintu Multicultural Chorus. Viewers will enjoy a mix of traditional Christmas classics as well as a world premiere holiday work and the beloved “Sleigh Ride.”

“I know for many in Maine it wouldn’t be Christmas without Magic of Christmas. We couldn’t let the pandemic stand in the way of sharing the joy of music and this annual tradition,” said PSO Music Director Eckart Preu. “We’re especially excited to know that this year people who live ‘away’ can share in the same experience, making it possible for many more who miss Magic to also join in the fun.”

Special guests for this year’s performance include Alyson Cambridge, soprano; James Kennerley, organ; Magic of Christmas Chorus; Portland Ballet; and Pihcintu Multicultural Chorus.

Program (subject to change): Coleridge-Taylor: Christmas Overture; Vejvanovský: Sonata Natalis C-dur; Menken: “A Place Called Home” from A Christmas Carol; Fullam: “Somewhere”; Richman: Hanukkah Medley; Tchaikovsky: Selections from The Nutcracker; Humperdinck/Tarkmann: Hansel and Gretel Prelude; Traditional/Sadler: “Sheriff Santa”; Wineglass: Title TBD – PSO Commission and World Premiere; Traditional/Richman: “O Holy Night!”; Traditional/Richman: Christmas Sing-a-long; Anderson: “Sleigh Ride”; and Traditional: “We Wish You a Merry Christmas.”

Single tickets are on sale and start at $10 a person. The performance will be professionally recorded at Merrill Auditorium and St. Luke’s Cathedral for digital release on the recently-launched PortlandSymphonyTV.com video platform. The concert will be available to watch on demand for all ticket-holders. The PSO will send detailed registration and watch instructions to ticket-holders preceding the concert.

PSO Executive Director Carolyn Nishon said, “We knew we wanted to find a way to make the holiday as special as possible for our community amidst the challenges of this year. What better way to do that than to fill our cups with joyous music? We hope that this season, the Magic of Christmas at Home will bring families and friends together safely to enjoy a Maine holiday tradition. Although we won’t be able to see our patrons at Merrill this year, we do encourage folks to continue the custom of donning their best and brightest holiday sweaters when they gather to watch Magic of Christmas at Home.”

The PSO Passport offers access to digital concerts, exclusive musical experiences, online Concert Conversations and digital program books. The PSO Passport is available in three levels, Super, Standard and Simple. Each level varies; the Super offers the opportunity for patrons to save their seats for future in-person concerts, exclusive access to all digital concerts, priority seating for in-person concerts (when it is safe to hold such concerts), digital backstage tours, ticket flexibility, Concert Conversations and digital program books. The Standard Passport offers the opportunity to reserve seats for half their usual price as well as extensive offerings to digital concerts. The Simple Passport is $70 for the year and includes digital access to one musical experience/concert a month, one Concert Conversation a month, access to the interactive, digital program books.

The 2020-21 season programming will continue to be announced on a rolling basis. More information can be found at www.portlandsymphony.org or call PortTIX at 207-842-0800.