December begins tomorrow, and that means only one thing: it's time to take that special person in your life to a holiday concert. Do you want to subject him or her to the same old carols, something historical, or something really weird? Here is a list of your options, not including the many performances of Handel's Messiah or The Nutcracker, to be previewed tomorrow.

THE BEST OF THE BEST:
>> For those who never want to attend the same old Christmas concert ever again (count me among them), the Folger Consort often gives the most intellectually and musically satisfying holiday concert in the city, in the decorated Shakespearean theater at the Folger Shakespeare Library (201 E. Capitol St SE). This year, the historically informed performance ensemble will give a staged production of the Second Shepherds' Play, a medieval mystery play about the first Christmas night. Tickets: $40 to $48. December 12 to 30, almost continuously.

>> Qualifying as the most modern holiday concert (not at all recommended for the traditionally minded) is the program by the 21st Century Consort, A Child’s Christmas in Wales, at the Smithsonian American Art Museum (8th and G Sts. NW). It combines the Dylan Thomas classic (narration by Martin Goldsmith) with mind-blowing music by Peter Warlock, George Crumb, and Paul Schoenfield. Tickets: $22. December 8, 5 p.m.

>> Also modern but easier on the ears is the all-Benjamin Britten program offered by Cantate Chamber Singers at St. Paul's Lutheran Church (4900 Connecticut Ave. NW). The concert combines Britten's two Christmas-themed pieces for children, A Boy Was Born and St. Nicholas. December 9, 3 p.m.

OLD MUSIC:
>> Although it has little to do with Christmas, Opera Lafayette's A Rococo Noël will be a beautiful concert. It will feature the Four Nations Ensemble and Julie Boulianne, at La Maison Française (4101 Reservoir Rd. NW). Tickets: $45. December 2, 7:30 p.m.

>> The Washington Bach Consort will perform J. S. Bach's Christmas Oratorio a week from today at Strathmore, a welcome alternative to the endless cycle of Handel's Messiah. Tickets: $21 to $55. December 7, 8 p.m.

>> The fine, local all-male choir known as the Suspicious Cheese Lords will give a Christmas concert on two separate dates, first at the Residence of the Swiss Ambassador (2900 Cathedral Ave. NW) and second at St. Paul's Lutheran Church (4900 Connecticut Ave. NE), with harpist Constance Whiteside. December 6, 7:30 p.m.; December 19, 7:30 p.m.

>> The 14-voice ensemble Pomerium will present a program of medieval and Renaissance music called Creator of the Stars: Christmas Music from the Old World on the Friends of Music series at Dumbarton Oaks. December 9 and 10, 8 p.m.

>> The local choir Chantry will present A Royal Renaissance Christmas, combining Tudor polyphonic works by Tallis (Missa Puer natus est) and Byrd (Propers for Christmas Day). Tickets: $28. December 15, 8 p.m. (St. Paul's K Street); December 16, 6 p.m. (St. Bernadette, Silver Spring).

MAKE IT JAZZ:
>> Once-lost, now-found soprano Kathleen Battle returns to Washington this year, in a Gospel and jazz holiday recital with pianist Joel Martin (replacing the originally announced Cyrus Chestnut) and the WPAS Children of the Gospel Choir in the Kennedy Center Concert Hall. Tickets: $25 to $85. December 7, 8 p.m.

>> If you are tired of Tchaikovsky's music for The Nutcracker, then you have not heard it filtered through the language of Duke Ellington and Billy Strayhorn. It's the Sugar Plum Fairy reinvented as Harlem swing: hear it live from the Smithsonian Jazz Masterworks Orchestra in the Voice of America Auditorium (330 Independence Ave. SW). Tickets: $25. December 8, 7:30 p.m.

>> Chris Brubeck's Triple Play will perform a free holiday jazz, folk, and blues concert at the National Gallery of Art (West Building Main Floor, West Garden Court). December 23, 6:30 p.m.

BEYOND CHRISTMAS:
>> If you want to celebrate your holidays more inclusively, the jazz-classical hybrid Turtle Island String Quartet is back again this year with its Solstice Celebration: A Festival of Lights, with guitarist Leo Kottke, this time in the Music Center at Strathmore. Tickets: $18 to $45. December 5, 8 p.m.

>> A grand, old tradition continues with the Washington Christmas Revels, at Lisner Auditorium, now in its 25th year. It's more of that Olde Tyme Musick, with the costumes and the Renaissance Festival accents. December 8-9 and 14-16.

THE REST:
>> The world-famous Vienna Boys Choir in the Music Center at Strathmore. December 2, 3 p.m.

>> The annual Christmas Concert for Charity at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception (400 Michigan Ave. NE), with the choirs of the Basilica and Catholic University. Entrance is free, with a donation collected for a worthy cause. Yours truly will be performing. December 7, 7:30 p.m.

>> The celebrated British male choral group The King's Singers will present Joy to the World at the George Mason University Center for the Arts. December 7, 8 p.m.

>> The Capitol City Symphony and Congressional Chorus present their annual Community Carol Sing at the Atlas Arts Center. December 16, 3:30 p.m.

>> Ever wanted to hear the sound of your voice ringing out in the Rotunda of the National Gallery of Art? You will have your chance to join your voice in some holiday cheer, led by guest choirs on the main floor under the Rotunda in the annual tradition. Plus, it's free! December 15, 16, 22, and 23, 1:30 and 2:30 p.m.

>> The Washington Chorus gives its annual Washington Chorus: Music for Christmas program in the Kennedy Center Concert Hall. December 15, 1 p.m.; December 22, 1 p.m. Also at Strathmore: December 21, 7:30 p.m.

>> The Master Chorale of Washington performs its annual Christmas Candlelight Concert in the Kennedy Center Concert Hall. December 16, 1 p.m.; December 22, 4 p.m.

>> The Choral Arts Society of Washington gives its annual Christmas Music program in the Kennedy Center Concert Hall, too. December 17, 7 p.m.; December 23, 7 p.m.; December 24, 1 p.m.

>> For little kids, the Choral Arts Society of Washington's annual Family Christmas Concert at the Kennedy Center Terrace Theater. December 22, 2 and 4 pm.