Among all the musical traditions New York has to offer at this time of year, none is greater than the annual holiday concert by the boys of St. Thomas Choir at St. Thomas Church. As he has each year for the past nine years, John Scott led his peerless group in Britten's Ceremony of Carols and John Rutter's Dancing Day, both based on medieval English carols. With Anna Reinersman accompanying on harp, the boys' voices soared in the high stone nave, clear all the way back to where I sat up in the organ loft. With all the bright lights and clamor immediately outside on Fifth Avenue, this precious hour of quiet, angelic music never felt more necessary.

More pics on the photo page.

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Classical Holiday Concerts for Every Taste in 2013

When you meet Caroline Shaw, your initial reaction is: She seems fairly ordinary. She keeps her hair short, dresses for comfort more than style, and speaks in a hushed, hurried voice. She talks about squeezing in gigs and rehearsal time, or being late on a deadline just like the scores of other freelance musicians trying to make ends meet in NYC, many of whom are her friends and frequent collaborators.

And yet, you also quickly get the sense that there's something different about her: a clear sense of purpose; an intense focus; a quiet confidence, which she seems to have had long before she won the Pulitzer earlier this year for Partita for 8 Voices.

Caroline and I met for coffee near her Hell's Kitchen apartment last week, where we spoke for an hour about everything from freelancing to Tuvan throat singing and Beyoncé. During our conversation, Caroline made mention of the fact that she's been a FoM reader since moving to NYC in 2008.

"I was trying to figure out what’s happening here, what to go see and what to do," she told me. "And so I bookmarked Feast of Music, because you go to a lot of stuff, and it was really hard for me to figure out what to go to. So, I've been a fan for a long time." 

I've only recently become a fan of Caroline's, but I'm catching up quickly. More highlights from our chat below.

For nearly ten years now, Carnegie Hall's successful Notables program has offered an entry-level opportunity for 20- and 30-somethings to become patrons for as little as $20 a year, with discount tickets and cocktail parties among the attactive perks. (Free tickets are available to those who donate $500 or more.) Donors also get into a couple of free concert events each season, followed by cocktail parties where you can clink glasses with a well-heeled crowd that could have come right out of Gossip Girl. 

On Monday night, Zankel Hall was the scene of the latest Notables event, hosted by Chairman Emeritus (and the hall's namesake) Jimmy Zankel, who promised to "chase down anyone who wasn't yet a donor at the afterparty." Zankel then proceeded to introduce mandolin virtuoso Chris Thile, who has expanded the possibilities of that traditional bluegrass instrument beyond what even Bill Monroe would have once imagined. "Chris told me backstage he doesn't mind if you whoop and holler," Zankel said, triggering several hearty yelps. "Let's have some fun."

Thile, no stranger to Carnegie Hall, was joined by several of his frequent collaborators. Reedy-voiced singer Michael Daves sang harmony on several tunes—including a trio of requests—while bassist and composr Edgar Meyer, who produced Thile's recent album of Bach Sonatas and Partitas, played the straightman to Thile's jokester persona. And, fast-rising singer-songwriter Sarah Jarosz—who blew us away when we first saw her at 18 and hardly looks any older now—sang the slowest, most sultry version of "Slow Down" I've ever heard, her pure voice penetrating all the way to the back of the hall. 

But Thile was the man of the hour, using his astonishing dexterity to make his Gibson F-5 sound like everything from a Chinese pipa to a Rennaissance lute. In Thile's hands, the mandolin isn't just for honkytonks and Oprys, but a timeless instrument that speaks across the centuries and deserves to be heard on the same stages where world-class violinists and pianists ply their trade. Like Carnegie Hall.