The Warner Theater Presents EMPIRE BRASS: THE SOUNDS OF CHRISTMAS Tonight

Tonight, December 20 at 8pm, the Warner Theatre welcomes North America's finest brass quintet, Empire Brass presenting The Sounds of Christmas. This seasonal concert will feature Elisabeth von Trapp, granddaughter of the legendary Maria & Baron von Trapp, whose story inspired The Sound of Music.

The five musicians that perform as Empire Brass have all held leading positions with major American orchestras and perform over 100 concerts a year in cities such as New York, Boston, Chicago, Washington, London, Zurich and Tokyo. With their best-selling recordings on the Telarc label they have introduced an even larger audience worldwide to the excitement of brass music that ranges from . . . Bach and Handel to jazz and Broadway. They are equally at home in the majestically antiphonal works that Gabrieli composed for St. Mark's Cathedral in Venice and the exuberantly show stopping tunes that Richard Rodgers and Andrew Lloyd Webber wrote for Broadway.

Singing professionally since childhood, Elisabeth has enthralled audiences from European cathedrals to Washington D.C.'s Kennedy Center.

Tickets for this concert are $20.50, $35.50, $45.50 and can be purchased by calling the Warner box office at 860-489-7180 or online at www.warnertheatre.org.

Make your Warner Experience even better with a special offer from Le Bistro by Avila. Purchase your tickets through the Warner Theatre and select our "Le Bistro promotion". For only $24.95 additional per ticket, you'll enjoy a sumptuous dining experience beginning at 5:30pm prior to the show.

Built by Warner Brothers Studios and opened in 1931 as a movie palace (1,772 seats), the Warner Theatre was described then as "Connecticut's Most Beautiful Theatre." Damaged extensively in a flood, the Warner was slated for demolition in the early 1980s until the non-profit Northwest Connecticut Association for the Arts (NCAA) was founded and purchased the theatre. The Warner reopened as a performing arts center in 1983, and restoration of the main lobbies and auditorium was completed in November 2002. In 2008, the new 50,000 square foot Carole and Ray Neag Performing Arts Center, which houses a 300 seat Studio Theatre, 200 seat restaurant and expansive school for the arts, was completed. Today, the Warner is in operation year-round with more than 160 performances and 100,000 patrons passing through its doors each season. Over 10,000 students, pre K-adult, participate in arts education programs and classes. Together, with the support of the community, the Warner has raised close to $17 million to revitalize its facilities. NCAA's mission is to preserve the Warner Theatre as an historic landmark, enhance its reputation as a center of artistic excellence and a focal point of community involvement, and satisfy the diverse cultural needs of the region. To learn more about the Warner Theatre, visit the website: www.warnertheatre.org.