Trans-Siberian Orchestra (TSO) is an American heavy metal band founded in 1996 by producer, composer, and lyricist Paul O'Neill, who brought together Jon Oliva and Al Pitrelli and keyboardist and co-producer Robert Kinkel to form the core of the creative team. The band gained in popularity when they began touring in 1999 after completing their second album, The Christmas Attic, the year previous. In 2007, The Washington Post referred to them as "an arena-rock juggernaut" and described their music as "Pink Floyd meets Yes and the Who at Radio City Music Hall." TSO has sold more than ten million concert tickets and over ten million albums. The band has released a series of rock operas: Christmas Eve and Other Stories, The Christmas Attic, Beethoven's Last Night, The Lost Christmas Eve, their two-disc Night Castle and Letters From the Labyrinth. Trans-Siberian Orchestra is also known for their extensive charity work and elaborate concerts, which include a string section, a light show, lasers, moving trusses, video screens, and effects synchronized to music.
Mannheim Steamroller is an American neoclassical new-age music ensemble founded and directed by percussionist/composer Chip Davis in 1974. The group is known primarily for its Fresh Aire series of albums, which blend classical music with elements of new age and rock, and for its modern recordings of Christmas music. The group has sold 28 million albums in the U.S. alone.
Dead Winter Dead is the ninth studio album by the American heavy metal band Savatage, released in 1995. It is a concept album, that tells a story from the perspectives of a Serb boy, a Bosniak girl and an old man. The story of the album is set during the Bosnian War, which was ongoing at the time.
"Carol of the Bells" is a popular Christmas carol, which is based on the Ukrainian New Year's song "Shchedryk". The music for the carol comes from the song written by the Ukrainian composer Mykola Leontovych in 1914; the English-language lyrics were written in 1936 by Peter Wilhousky.
Robert Kinkel is an American professional session keyboardist and music engineer most known for his role as a co-creator/co-producer/co-composer and touring keyboardist with Trans-Siberian Orchestra along with extensive studio work with the progressive metal band Savatage. He attended Hamilton College and graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in music with a minor in physics.
"Christmas Eve/Sarajevo 12/24" is an instrumental medley of "God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen" and "Shchedryk", first released on the Savatage album Dead Winter Dead in 1995 as "Christmas Eve ." It was re-released by the Trans-Siberian Orchestra, a side project of several Savatage members, on their 1996 debut album Christmas Eve and Other Stories. The piece describes a lone cello player playing a forgotten Christmas carol in war-torn Sarajevo.
Johnny Lee Middleton is an American musician, best known as the bass guitarist for the heavy metal bands Savatage and Trans-Siberian Orchestra.
Zachary Trussell, known professionally as Zachary "Zak" Stevens, is an American singer, best known as the second lead vocalist of the heavy metal band Savatage. He currently performs with the heavy metal bands Circle II Circle and Archon Angel. Stevens has a degree in psychology, but is not a practicing psychologist.
The Christmas Attic is the second studio album by the American rock band Trans-Siberian Orchestra, released in 1998. The cover art is by Edgar Jerins.
MTV: TRL Christmas is a Christmas compilation album released by the record labels Atlantic and Lava. Released on October 30, 2001, it features singers who were promoted on the music television series Total Request Live. The album consists of sixteen songs, including covers of Christmas standards and carols, as well as original music. Music critics identified several musical genres, such as pop punk and bubblegum pop, throughout the album. Several tracks from MTV: TRL Christmas had been featured on the artists' previous projects.
Paul O'Neill was an American composer, lyricist, record producer, and guitarist. He was the producer of the progressive metal band Savatage, and the founder of Trans-Siberian Orchestra.
"Wizards in Winter" is an instrumental track by Trans-Siberian Orchestra, released on the 2004 album The Lost Christmas Eve. A clip of the band playing the first few seconds of the piece was used in a commercial for its most recent concert tour, and the song is often used to open their live shows. Its musical style incorporates progressive rock, symphonic metal, and heavy metal, with influences from classical music.
The Lost Christmas Eve is the fourth studio album by the Trans-Siberian Orchestra. It was released on October 12, 2004, and is the last album in their "Christmas trilogy", with Christmas Eve and Other Stories (1996) and The Christmas Attic (1998) coming before it. All three albums, as well as their The Ghosts of Christmas Eve DVD, were featured in the box set of The Christmas Trilogy. In 2012, Trans-Siberian Orchestra toured a live production of The Lost Christmas Eve for the first time and performed the rock opera in over 100 arena shows across North America. In late October 2013, TSO released a narrated version of The Lost Christmas Eve much like they did in 2012 with Beethoven's Last Night.
"Christmas Canon" is a Christmas song by the Trans-Siberian Orchestra (TSO) from their 1998 album The Christmas Attic.
The Ghosts of Christmas Eve is a 1999 made-for-television film showcasing a Christmas music performance by Trans-Siberian Orchestra, starring Ossie Davis and Allie Sheridan. Guest performers included Michael Crawford and Jewel. Other performers include Bob Kinkel, Al Pitrelli, Chris Caffery, Johnny Lee Middleton, Jeff Plate, Tony Gaynor, Daryl Pediford and Tommy Farese.
Trans-Siberian Orchestra discography consists of six studio albums, one soundtrack album, one compilation album, one EP, one video album and six singles.
Dreams of Fireflies (On a Christmas Night) is an EP by the rock band Trans-Siberian Orchestra. It was released in 2012 on Lava Records, and is based on the fourth movement (Winter) of Vivaldi's Four Seasons.
Billboard magazine only charted Christmas singles and albums along with the other popular non-holiday records until the 1958 holiday season when they published their first section that surveys only Christmas music.
