Trans-Siberian Orchestra is an American rock band founded in 1993 by producer, composer, and lyricist Paul O'Neill, who brought together Jon Oliva and Al Pitrelli (both members of Savatage) and keyboardist and co-producer Robert Kinkel to form the core of the creative team. The band gained in popularity when they began touring in 1999 after completing their second album, The Christmas Attic.

In 2007, the Washington Post referred to them as "an arena-rock juggernaut" and described their music as "Pink Floyd meets Yes and The Who at Radio City Music Hall."TSO has sold more than 10 million concert tickets and over 10 million albums. Trans-Siberian Orchestra is also known for their extensive charity work and elaborate concerts, which include a string section, a light show, lasers, "enough pyro to be seen from the International Space Station", moving trusses, video screens, and effects synchronized to music.

Both Billboard Magazine and Pollstar have ranked them as one of the top ten ticket-selling bands in the first decade of the new millennium. Their path to success was unusual in that TSO is the first major rock band to go straight to theatres and arenas, having never played at a club, never having an opening act and never being an opening act. Paul O'Neill died on April 5, 2017.

One of their quite remarkable tracks is "Christmas Eve/Sarajevo 12/24". It 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.

Check out the original video below:

Season Greetings from all of us at Aroundtable !!!!!