Like cocoa without marshmallows, or a tree without tinsel, carols without candlelight verge on holiday heresy. For the full sensory seasonal experience, head to Berkeley's First Congregational Church. There, bathed in the soft glow of real candlelight, the acclaimed Young Women's Chorus of San Francisco will perform carols ancient and new. Enjoy Britten's A Ceremony of Carols (with harpist Anna Maria Mendieta) as well a new commission by Bay Area composer Frank La Rocca. Other music by Tomás Luis Victoria, Michael Haydn, Levente Gyöngyösi, Tarik O'Regan, and familiar carols of the season are sure to delight and enchant. The Chorus' Grammy-winning artistic director Dr. Susan McMane conducts the ever evocative Carols by Candlelight.