Get in tune with the season at Tuba Christmas, a gathering of more than 100 musicians with tubas and euphoniums playing your favourite holidays tunes with a distinctive deep, warm brass sound, Saturday at Market Square.
This is the 41st year for the event, one of Victoria’s favourite holiday traditions.
As the name implies, the concert features an ensemble of highly polished brass tubas and their smaller brethren, the higher-pitched euphonium.
Musicians hail from Victoria and the Pacific Northwest, including current and retired music teachers and past and present members of the Naden Band.
At the family-friendly event, you will hear tubist and University of Victoria instructor Paul Beauchesne leading the ensemble in renditions of seasonal favourites such as We Three Kings, Good King Wenceslas and Jingle Bells.
Tuba Christmas dates back to 1974, when it originated in New York City. Concerts now take place in more than 200 cities worldwide.
Organized by the University of Victoria School of Music, the concert raises funds for the Times Colonist Christmas Fund, a charity that assists families and individuals in need in Greater Victoria.
Admission is free, but donations are accepted. The show runs 1 to 4 p.m. Saturday in Market Square, 560 Johnson St. Dress for the weather, as the venue is outdoors. For information, go to Facebook or finearts.uvic.ca/music/calendar/events/41st-annual-tubachristmas.
Donate at timescolonist.com/christmas-fund.
A non-holiday party for the bah-humbuggers
The Royal B.C. Museum is hosting a Festive Non-Holiday Party for people burned out by seasonal obligations, Thursday at the museum.
This cheeky party will appeal to those who don’t celebrate the holidays, or identify more with the Grinch or Ebenezer Scrooge at this time of the year.
Partygoers will be entertained by three bah-humbugging comedians — Zach Rousseau, Elyot Ryan and Lucia Ribeiro, with acts guaranteed to cure your holiday blues.
As with all Happy Hour events at the Royal B.C. Museum (which takes place every second Thursday of the month), the event will feature a unique spin on B.C. history.
This month will highlight B.C.’s ultimate anti-party: prohibition. Through activities and games, visitors will learn about prohibition in the province and how we were once crowned Canada’s most inebriated province.
The event takes place in designated galleries, not the whole museum.
Admission is $10, with drinks and light fare for purchase. The event runs 5:30 to 7 p.m. Thursday at the museum, 675 Belleville St. For details and to buy tickets, go to royalbcmuseum.bc.ca/visit/
calendar and click the event listing on Dec. 12.
Calling all tiny ornithologists
Get your children outside with the Christmas Bird Count for Kids, one of North America’s longest-running citizen science projects, Saturday at Beckwith Park.
The event is run by Rocky Point Bird Observatory.
Take a guided bird walk and meet the winter birds that call the Saanich park their home.
Children might even find a wood duck or two hidden at the duck pond.
There will be holiday refreshments, colouring sheets and local volunteers eager to share their passion.
All ages are welcome and the trails are stroller-friendly.
The event is free to join. It runs 1 to 3 p.m. Saturday at Beckwith Park, 857 Beckwith Ave. Wear sturdy footwear and weather-appropriate clothing. For more information, go to Facebook or email cbc4kids@rpbo.org.
Take a break in the great outdoors
Take a break from shopping and have a visit with Mother Nature at Forest Festivities, a drop-in event suitable for all members of the family, Saturday and Sunday at Elk/Beaver Lake Regional Park.
At the family-friendly event, you or your children can make recycled cards, crafts and a small green swag with Scotch broom.
CRD Parks staff will be on hand to supply materials and instructions — all you need to bring is your creativity.
If you want to take a walk, regional parks staff and volunteer naturalists can answer your questions and point you in the right direction on the park’s well-marked trails.
Admission to Forest Festivities is free. It runs 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday and Sunday at the Beaver Lake Nature Centre of Elk/Beaver Lake Regional Park, Saanich. The facility is wheelchair-accessible. The park is served by B.C. Transit No. 70, No. 72 or No. 75.
Please leave pets at home. For more information, go to crd.bc.ca/parks.
Celebrate solstice on the Gorge
Pack up the whole family and head on over to Lights on the Gorge, a laid-back community celebration to welcome the winter solstice, Sunday at the Victoria Canoe and Kayak Club.
The event, sponsored by the Gorge Tillicum Community Association, is an opportunity to see friends and meet neighbours in an informal setting.
You can take part in family-friendly activities, such as tree decorating and lantern making.
Entertainment includes music, storytelling, carol singing and a Mummer’s Play by Quicksbottom Morris.
The highlight of the afternoon is the tree light-up at 5:15 p.m., followed by a lantern and drum procession.
The event is free to join. It runs 1:30 to 5:30 p.m. Sunday at the Victoria Canoe and Kayak Club, 327 Gorge Rd. West. For more information, go to gorgetillicum.ca.
Get in the sing-a-long spirit
Sing your heart out at two Christmas sing-a-long events on Sunday and Monday.
You can belt out traditional Christmas favourites, both sacred and secular at the Christmas Community Sing-A-Long at the First Metropolitan United Church on Sunday.
Hot chocolate and cookies await participants.
The free event runs 2:30 to 4 p.m. Sunday at First Metropolitan United Church, 932 Balmoral Rd. For more information, go to firstmetvictoria.com.
Silver Threads Victoria Centre is hosting a Christmas sing-a-long on Monday.
Join members and volunteers for a fun time singing classic holiday songs that bring back the love and warmth of Christmas.
The event is free to attend. It runs 1 to 2 p.m. Monday at Silver Threads Victoria Centre, 2340 Richmond Rd. For details, go to silverthreads.ca.
