"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 (Sarajevo 12/24)." 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 (based on Vedran Smailović) playing a forgotten Christmas carol in war-torn Sarajevo. Paul O'Neill explained the story behind "Christmas … read more
"Christmas Eve/Sarajevo 12/24" is an instrumental medley of "God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen" and "Shchedryk", first relea… read more
"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… read more
Trans-Siberian Orchestra is a rock orchestra founded in New York City, USA by Paul O'Neill, Robert Kinkel, Jon Oliva, and Al Pitrelli in 1996. O'Neill had managed and produced rock bands including Aerosmith, Humble Pie and Scorpions, later writing for and producing Savatage, where he began working with Kinkel and Oliva. The roots of TSO are found in Savatage, a traditional heavy metal band that gradually progressed into a symphonic metal act. Savatage's rock operas, starting with STREETS, began the experimentation with what would become TSO culminating on the track &q… read more