The insidious onslaught of Christmas music starts before Thanksgiving leftovers are even finished, piped into any space where people congregate, from elevators and malls to movie theaters and gas stations.
Rather than enhancing the seasonal spirit, the constant barrage of kitsch can turn the sonically sensitive into agoraphobics, living in fear that an inane melody will lodge in their brains. The shame of it is that the canned Christmas repertoire often overshadows the abundance of splendid holiday music that's available around the region, in more styles and genres than Baskin-Robbins has flavors.
Between the ridiculous and the sublime, between the Chipmunks warbling ``Christmas Time Is Here Again'' and San Francisco Symphony and Chorus performing Handel's ``Messiah,'' one can find a cornucopia of holiday sounds, from hip-hop and gospel to Celtic and Balkan music.
Since officially disbanding in 1997, the amazing a cappella trio of sisters Maggie, Terre and Suzzy Roche have mostly gone their own ways, but the holidays have been known to bring families together. With their bold, soaring harmonies, wry sense of humor and expansive stylistic palette, the Roches offer a program of their best known numbers, infused with Christmas themes and a preview of their upcoming album ``Moonswept,'' the trio's first new CD since 1995's ``Can We Go Home Now'' (Ryko).
Details: 8 p.m. Monday-Tuesday; Freight Salvage, 1111 Addison St.
, Berkeley, $22.50, (510) 548-1761,
In a long-running and much-loved Bay Area tradition, the celebrated all-male a cappella ensemble Chanticleer offers a timeless holiday program with material ranging from Gregorian chants and Renaissance songs to traditional carols and contemporary compositions celebrating the season.
Details: 8 p.
m. Tuesday-Wednesday, Memorial Church, 459 Serra Mall, Building 500, Stanford University, presented by Stanford Lively Arts, $44, (650) 725-2787, ; and 6 and 8:30 p.m.
Friday, Mission Santa Clara, 550 El Camino Real, Santa Clara, $25-$44, (415) 392-4400.
Still going strong after more than six decades, this legendary gospel troupe presents a spiritually charged program of Christmas songs based on its 2003 album, ``Go Tell It on the Mountain.'' While the CD featured performances by special guests such as Aaron Neville, Tom Waits, Chrissie Hynde and (on ``Away in a Manger''!
) George Clinton and Robert Randolph, the troupe will sing on its own. With the powerful baritone of leader Clarence Fountain and fellow founder Jimmy Carter's bright tenor leading the pack, that's all that's necessary to catch the spirit.
Details: 7:30 p.
m. Wednesday, Rio Theatre, 1205 Soquel Ave., Santa Cruz, $25-$40, (831) 427-2227, .
(The show is presented by Kuumbwa Jazz Center.)
Whether she's a soulful jazz singer or a jazzy soul singer, Clairdee showed she could deliver a cup brimming with holiday cheer on her 2003 album, ``This Christmas,'' featuring jazz tunes and holiday standards by Charles Brown, Thad Jones, Horace Silver, Sammy Cahn and Donny Hathaway. She'll be joined by trumpeter and vocalist Rich Armstrong (best known for his work with Michelle Shocked), saxophonist Charles McNeal, guitarist John Hoy, bassist Ruth Davies and drummer Jim Zimmerman, while Ken French and Jon Herbst share the piano chair.
Details: 7 p.m. Thursday, Kuumbwa Jazz Center, 320-2 Cedar St.
, Santa Cruz, $15-$18, (831) 427-2227, . She also brings her Christmas program to Yoshi's on Dec. 24, 7 and 9 p.
m., 510 Embarcadero West, Jack London Square, Oakland, $10-$16, (510) 238-9200, .
This annual festival has become a dependable showcase for some of hip-hop's top talent.
The featured acts include Redman, Raekwon, Supernatural, Boot Camp Clik's Smif-N-Wessun, Pharoahe Monch and Dirty Heads. With DJ Kool spinning hip-hop hits and a lineup drawn from 1990s heavyweights, these are rappers who have been around long enough to appreciate a little Christmas spirit.
Details: 8 p.
m. Friday, Avalon Nightclub, 777 Lawrence Expressway, Santa Clara, $30, (408) 241-0777, .
The San Francisco Early Music Society presents a Renaissance Christmas program of carols, villancicos and sacred music from Spain and England.
The ensemble features soprano Laurie Heimes, alto Stephanie Prewitt, tenor Christopher Lecluyse and bass Hugh Davies, backed by David Tayler on lute, theorbo and vihuela; Hanneke van Proosdij on organ and recorder; and Peter Maund on percussion.
Details: 8 p.m.
Friday, First Lutheran Church, 600 Homer Ave., Palo Alto, $25, (510) 528-1725, . Also, 8 p.
m. Saturday, First Congregational Church, 2345 Channing Way, Berkeley, and 3 p.m.
, Dec. 17, St. John the Evangelist Episcopal Church, 1661 15th St.
, San Francisco.
The Bay Area's dazzling all-women a cappella vocal ensemble Kitka performs a captivating program of seasonal music from Ukraine, Latvia, Romania, Bulgaria, Moravia and other lands, based on the gorgeous 2004 album ``Wintersongs.''
Details: 8:15 p.
m. Friday, Noe Valley Music Series, 1021 Sanchez St., San Francisco, $25, (415) 454-5238, .
Also, 7 p.m. Dec.
17, First Unitarian Church, 685 14th St., Oakland.
This top-notch Bay Area Celtic quartet presents a bustling Christmas show with an impressive cast of guests, including esteemed Irish harpist and singer Jesse Autumn, who's featured on the band's new CD ``YuleDance.
'' The Prince Charles Pipe Band Grade 1 is also on the bill. The program features old and new Christmas songs, folk tales and dancing led by Bethany Duff with the Rosemary Turco Irish Dancers.
Details: 7:30 p.
m. Friday, Le Petit Trianon, 72 N. Fifth St.
, San Jose, $20, (408) 847-6982, . Molly's Revenge also performs with Autumn and the Community Music School Teen Band, which she leads, at the Attic, 7 p.m.
Dec. 22, 931 Pacific Ave., Santa Cruz, $20, (831) 460-1800, .
``Navidad Flamenca'' offers a tangy taste of Andalusia with a flamenco Christmas celebration, featuring dancers Carola Zertuche, Cristina Hall and Fanny Ara accompanied by vocalist Vicente Griego, guitarist Ricardo Diaz and vocalist Nina Menendez, director of the Bay Area Flamenco Partnership, which is co-presenting the event.
Details: 8 p.m.
Saturday, La Pe a Cultural Center, 3105 Shattuck Ave., Berkeley, $20, (510) 849-2568, extension 20, .
Rockabilly roustabout Setzer concludes his fifth annual Christmas Extravaganza Tour with a two-night run in Redwood City.
While he'll be playing material drawn from throughout his career, including his new album, ``13,'' he's going to have Christmas on his mind, as his Surfdog Records label just reissued his 2002 CD, ``Boogie Woogie Christmas,'' and last year's ``Dig That Crazy Christmas,'' plus his ``Christmas Extravaganza'' DVD, shot in Los Angeles during the 2004 tour.
Details: 8 p.m.
Dec. 21-22, Fox Theatre, 2215 Broadway St., Redwood City, (650) 309-4119, .
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