TSO takes Christmas show on the road

The Trans-Siberian Orchestra was built from the foundation of the progressive metal band Savatage in 1995.

"Savatage had recorded an album called 'Dead Winter Dead,' " guitarist Al Pitrelli said during a telephone interview from New York. "That album was a rock opera about the Bosnian war in the 1990s. It featured a song called 'Christmas Eve (Sarajevo, 12/24),' which became a holiday hit while Savatage was on a European tour."

The song is an orchestrated medley of "Carol of the Bells' and "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen," and it caught the ear of the American public.

Savatage — then featuring vocalist Zachary Stevens, bassist Johnny Lee Middleton, guitarist/keyboardist Jon Oliva, drummer Jeff Plate and Pitrelli (who replaced Oliva's late brother Criss) — was holed up in a German hotel when they heard the news. "We couldn't believe it," Pitrelli said. "But it was true. Once the facts sunk in, we knew we had some things to adjust when we got back home."

Oliva, who founded Savatage, was intrigued by this turn of events. "Dead Winter Dead" was the metal band's second foray into rock opera, its first being "Streets: A Rock Opera," in 1991. But there was something different about the response to "Christmas Eve."

"The song was being played all over the adult contemporary radio stations throughout the United States," said Pitrelli. "It wasn't like us to be played there. We were a metal band. But Jon began thinking about this and decided to recruit some members of Savatage and form the Trans-Siberian Orchestra."

The new group's name — TSO to fans — sounded great to Pitrelli, who has played with Alice Cooper, Lita Ford and Asia. "It was something that was non-religious, non-denominational and sounded a little exotic. Even the moniker 'TSO' sounded cool. And there's something visual about anything Siberian. I mean the name Savatage isn't quite a holiday name."

Capitalizing on the "Christmas Eve" single, Oliva began writing a holiday-themed rock opera, which would become Trans-Siberian Orchestra's debut, "Christmas Eve and Other Stories."

The opera wasn't going to be a progressive-metal work, said Pitrelli. "Jon deliberately combined different musical styles to make that album. He wanted the album to transcend the ages. He wanted it to become a holiday tradition. "At first I didn't know what to think," said Pitrelli. "My holiday tradition was watching 'Charlie Brown Christmas' and 'It's a Wonderful Life.' But when I heard what Jon was doing, it became clear to me that he was on to something."