Still being repaired: Concert de Noël dans la Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Paris Proceeds (with hardhats)
On-going repairs did not stop the Concert de Noël from happening. Here it is with singers in hardhats:
UPDATE: UNFORTUANTELY, THE YOUTUBE LINK HAS GONE COLD. WE CHECKED ON IT TODAY AND STILL OUT.
We have provided this short link of the concert below:
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Winchester College Chapel Choir and Onyx Brass Release "A Winter's Night"
The Winchester College Chapel Choir is joined by the Onyx Brass in A Winter's Night: Christmas Music for Choir, Brass Quintet, and Organ off the Signum Classics label. Led byHoward Ionascu, the recording includes C. McDowall's "A Winter's Night," C. Wood's "Mater Ora Filium," and traditional Christmas carols. Sample the album here: A Winter's Night: Christmas Music for Choir, Brass Quintet, and Organ.
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Leighton Jones reviews Saint Nicolas, A Ceremony of Carols – BBC Concert Orchestra, Crouch End Festival Chorus
Make sure to check out Leighton Jones' review of Saint Nicolas, Ceremony of Carols by the BBC Concert Orchestra and the Crouch End Festival Chorus on The Classic Review. Click Here for the review.
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Make sure to check out Classical Music Daily's online review of Christmas in Puebla by Siglo de Oro on the Delphian label. CLICK HERE.
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It has nice interviews with the first person to perform the solo to Bob Chilcott who performed it in the 1960s. Check it out before it is taken down.
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Almost every popular
Christmas song released is a longing for home.
It was not always this way.
In fact, outside of carols, pre-mid-20th Century, there were not
many popular Christmas songs.
However, the world wars and
railroad travel changed that. There was a time when you did not go home for
Christmas. However, with the expansion of the railroad system, going home
became much more affordable, fast, and manageable.
One would think, "The
War to End All Wars," World War I, would have contributed to the Christmas
song cycle, but with the advent of film, Hollywood, and sound recording, by
World War II, time as just right for the popular Christmas song.
In looking at pre-World War
II Christmas songs, many of the songs deal with St. Nicholas (“Santa Clause is
Coming to Town” 1934). A now considered staple of Christmas is the 1857 song,
“Jingle Bells.” However, “Jingle Bells” was originally a Thanksgiving song, but
now forever associated with Christmas. One pre-World War II song would set the
stage on cozy winter songs is 1933’s “Winter Wonderland.” Though “Winter
Wonderland” is not necessarily a Christmas song, you will find it on the list
of any Christmas album. More Santa Claus-themed songs would come out: “Rudolph
the Red Nose Reindeer” was released in 1939.
Even, “I heard the bells on
Christmas Day” (1863), written by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, was more of a
look at the irony of hate in America in compared to the “peace on earth” dogma
of Christmas carols. John Lennon would follow in the footsteps of Longfellow
with “This is Christmas.” Similarly, Elvis Costello with “The Rebel Jesus.”
It was the film-musical that
brought the Christmas and holiday songs to the forefront. In 1937, the film “On
the Avenue” would bring a
list of wintertime and Christmas hits by Irving Berlin including “I got your
love to keep me warm.” Although these wintertime songs were cute, they did not
have the homesickness element that later songs would bring.
Coming
of War
By 1937, things were heating
up in Europe. With Hitler in Germany, the Rhineland had already been
militarized -- war was eminent. The Anschluss, or the annexation of Austria,
would follow in 1938. In 1939, we would see the incursions into Poland and Czechoslovakia
by Germany. By September 1939, the United Kingdom was at war.
Yet, in the United States,
war would not come for another 27 months. However, with World War II almost 2
years away for the States, what brought about the Homeric longing for home that
would keep the popular Christmas song going to this day?
In 1940, in the United
States, various conscription laws were codified into the Selective Training and
Service Act of 1940. This required the registration of all men 18 to 45 years
of age and mandated a one-year service. Men were chosen by lottery. In August
1941, about four months before the attack on Pearl Harbor, the service term was
extended to the duration of the war and six months. About 10 million men would
be conscripted.
An estimated 200,000 were
entering the military per month!
This would continue until
1947.
In 1942, Irving Berlin would
provide another holiday hit with “Happy Holiday.” Featured in the film Holiday Inn, Bing Crosby would enter
into the pantheon of forever holiday singers. Production of Holiday Inn began in 1941, before the
United States entered the war, but it was already almost two years into U.S.
conscription. Although “Happy Holiday” is a jumpy song, it’s only a simple tune
often added as garnish to “It’s the Holiday Season” (Andy Williams).
It would be “White
Christmas” that would be the biggest hit of the film, spurring a spinoff film
of the same name. The song “White Christmas” (1941) would contain the formula
for the many imitations to come:
I’m dreaming of a white Christmas
Just like the ones I use to know
“White Christmas” rings of nostalgia
for Christmases long ago. Of course, a description of a snowing landscape was a
hit with soldiers who would be in the Pacific Theatre later or soldiers who moved
to the Southwestern United States, where snow was non-existent unless you were
at high elevations.
By 1943, the United States
was already deep in the war. In the UK, the Brits were four years in. That year
brought us a song that was specifically written for longing of home. Although, I don’t know when exactly “I’ll be
home for Christmas” was written, it was released in 1943 by Bing Crosby
probably hoping to imitate his “White Christmas” success. At first, this song
was turned down by the music executives as being too sad (wait, I have more
opinion on this from the Brits). So it was rejected!
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It was written by Kim Gannon
and composer Walter Kent, although later pressings would include Buck Ram, who
has previously written a poem of the same title.
However, Gannon was able to
sing it for Crosby while they were playing golf, and Crosby agreed to record
it.
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From whose point of view was
the song written, has been in controversy. Legend has it, that it was written
from the point of view of a soldier abroad. The music industry found the last
line of “only in my dreams” troubling, but Crosby recorded it anyway. It
charted for 11 weeks, peaking at #3. The U.S. War Department included the song
on a December 1944 V-disc.It’s been
said that it became the most-requested song at U.S.O. shows however documented
proof of this is lacking.
The Brits had a different
reaction to “I’ll be home for Christmas.” The British Broadcasting Corporation
(BBC) banned the song from broadcast as they felt the song would lower morale
of British troops. (1).
An interesting note is that
Ganon bequeathed the royalty rights of the song to the American Heart
Association. Gannon died in 1974.
Although 1944 produced the
winter seduction song, “Baby It’s Cold Outside,” 1944 also saw the release of
“Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas.” In 2007, the American Society of
Composers, Authors, and Publishers (ASCAP), ranked this song the third most
popular Christmas song (in the preceding five year though). In 2004, the
American Film Institute named in in its “100 years…100 songs.”
Unbeknownst to many, the
song did not come out of a Christmas film, but the 1944’s film musical with
Judy Garland, Meet me in St. Louis. However,
the lyrics as we know them are not the original lyrics. Written by Hugh Martin
and Ralph Baine, Martin wrote the song while vacationing in Birmingham,
Alabama. The original lyrics, are somewhat apocalyptic:
Have yourself a merry little
Christmas
It may be your last.
Next year we may all be living in the
Past.
Pretty dismal.
Judy Garland, who would sing
the song, along with her co-star Tom Drake, and director Vincente Minelli
(later husband of Garland and father to Liza Minelli), criticized the song as
depressing, and rightfully so.
“It may be your last” would
definitely raise eyebrows among troops abroad.
Martin changed “It may be
your last / Next year we may all be living in the past” became “Let
your heart be light / Next year all our troubles will be out of sight.”
“Have yourself a Merry
Little Christmas,” at least as performed in the film, turns the longing of home
on its head. In the film, the family is leaving St. Louis for New York and it
may be the family’s last Christmas in their hometown. It was sure to resonate
with many leaving their hometowns for war:
Here we are as in olden days
Happy golden days of yore.
Faithful friend who are dear to us
Gather near to us once more.
Through the years
We all will be together
If the fates allow.
The post-War years brought
the Cold War and another term of conscription. The Selective Service Act of
1948 required all men 18 to 26 to register. With this act, men could be called
up to 21 months of military services and 5 years of reserve services. During
the Korean War, 1.5 million men were inducted into the services. Another 1.3
million volunteered. With the passage of the Universal Military Training and
Service Acts in 1951, the draft age was lowered to 18 ½ years of age, and it
extended the service term to 24 months. In 1953, the paternity deferment was
removed. About 11 million men volunteered for service between January 1954 and
April 1975.
The Rhythm and Blues
classic, “Merry Christmas Baby” also had a coming home theme though the lyrics are
not that sophisticated. The same can be said for 1951’s “Christmas Times a
Coming,” by Bill Monroe, which also mention he is on his way home which became
country music’s most iconic Christmas song:
Christmas times a coming
Christmas Times a coming
And you know I’m going home.
“There’s No Place Like Home for the Holidays”
was published and recorded in 1954. It was written by Robert Allen with lyrics
by Al Stillman. Perry Como may have been the first to record it, and his along
with The Carpenters, are probably the best versions. Like the title says, the
song focuses on people heading home for the holidays:
Oh, there's no place like
Home for the holidays,
'Cause no matter how far away you roam
When you pine for the sunshine
Of a friendly face
For the holidays, you can't beat
Home, sweet home
Very simple with one verse that repeats and one refrain, the
formula works to create that returning home feeling.
Even with the advent of Rock
n’ Roll, the home theme continued. Elvis Presley was drafted in 1958, He
recorded a string of home-longing hits. A bluesy song, “Santa Bring My Baby
Back (to Me)” in 1957 yearned for the return of his lover. In the 1970s, Elvis would record “It Won’t
Seem Like Christmas (Without You)” and “If I get home on Christmas Day.”
Remember, that before becoming a rock star, Presley was a trucker, so coming
come would have been important to him, a refuge for being on the road. One
could say that employment like trucking and railroad workers kept people away
from home. Nevertheless, they were not multitudes as those in the service. In
addition, Elvis would be drafted and would spend some military service in
Germany.
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For at least the first part
of the 20th Century, the Christmas song focused on homecoming. It
may be conscription and war had much to do with this.
In 1960s, the bluesy “Please
Come Home for Christmas (Bell will be Ringing)” came out begging to the return
for a loved one. This is not to be confused with “Christmas (Baby Please Come
Home)” recorded The Phil Spector Project and sung by Darlene Love who would go
on to sing many great pop Christmas songs (e.g., “All
Alone at Christmas” "Baby Please Come Home").
Although this essay only
takes us to the 1960s, in the Mormon Tabernacle recording and live performance, Home for the Holiday, Alfie Boe recorded a
medley of songs on this them that included “No Place Like Home for the
Holidays,” “I’ll be home for Christmas,” “Somewhere in My Memory” from Home Alone, and even “Bring Him Home”
from the musical Les Miserable, a
true homage to the returning home feeling of the modern Christmas song.
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The classic home-longing Christmas songs are still the standards. Few post-1960s song have been able to join the group of elite holiday hits, although there are some good ones out there. Furthermore, it is not to say the more extended travel, war, and the draft are the only reasons for the surge of these songs in the mid-20th century. The advent of recording, radio, television, and the three-minute song probably played a roll also.
As I write this in 2020,
many of us are sequestered due to the pandemic. Many carols concerts and
services are cancelled or are being posted online as virtual concerts. Even the famed Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols at King’s College, Cambridge was first not to
be performed with an audience, now it will not be performed live on Christmas Eve.
Instead, a pre-recorded performance will air.
We are also being encouraged
not to gather with extended family for Christmas, and instead gather with
immediate family. Although there is some flaunting of these recommendations,
people are feeling a worldwide homesickness. Even Queen Elizabeth in a pandemic radio speech quoted the famous song: "We'll meet again."
We are missing our families. We
are missing the return home. The pandemic will soon end and we will be home
for Christmas once again.
Rodriguez, McRobbie, Linda (18 April 2013) “11 Reasons
the BBC Has Banned Hit Songs”. Mental Floss.
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Choir of St. John's College Cambridge released "Advent Live, Vol. 2"
The Choir of St. John's College Cambridge has released "Advent Live, Vol. 2" and it is a beautiful album. If you listen to the Advent Carol Services annually that is played on BBC Radio, you are going to love this one. If you miss that annual concert, you'll still love this one. Take a listen by clicking HERE.
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New Carols, Premiered Carols, and Premiered Christmas Music 2020
UPDATED Dec. 24, 2021.
This is a working list of new carols and Christmas music that was premiered by a choir or classical music group in 2020. If you have one we don't know about, or special commission that were debuted in 2020, please leave a comment to this post or email us at christmascarolsblog@gmail.com
New Carols, Premiered Carols, and Premiered Christmas Music
Patrick Hawes: "Still, Still the Night." Words by his the composer's brother Andrew Hawes, for The Self-Isolation Choir: a UK-based virtual choir. The carol was premiered at the choir's virtual Nine Lessons and Carols on 20 December 2020.
Paul John Rudoi: "The Orbit Carol" - premiered by VocalEssence
"The Penbroke Carol." - BBC Singers. Written by the Girl choristers of Pembroke College.
Diana Burrells: "Green groweth the holly" - Choirs of St. Catharine's College, Cambridge in their 2020 album Alpha & O: Music for Advent & Christmas."
Christopher Foxs: New setting of the "O Anitphons" - Choirs of St. Catharine's College, Cambridge in their 2020 album Alpha & O: Music for Advent & Christmas."
Jeremy Thurlows: Magnificat for upper voices, organ and tape - Choirs of St. Catharine's College, Cambridge in their 2020 album Alpha & O: Music for Advent & Christmas."
Huw Williams': "Away in a manger" - The Choir of Bath Abbey in their 2020 album Gaudete! - premiere recording. written for Her Majesty The Queen's Christmas day broadcast in December
2015
Eoghan Desmond: "Be all Merry" - Choral Scholars of the University College, Dublin in their 2020 album Be Merry.
Ivo Antognini: "Christe Redemptor Omnium" for tenor solo, chorus, violin and violoncello - Choral Scholars of the University College, Dublin in their 2020 album Be Merry. Commissioned by the Swiss Embassy in Dublin, Ireland.
Ben Parry and Garth Bardsley: "The Aldeburgh Carol." In partnership with Britten-Pears Arts, National Youth Chamber Choir.
Francisco Carbonell: "Heart of God," Winner of the Indianapolis Symphonic Choir Carol Commission Competition.
Carson Cooman: "Legend of the Little Child." Premiered by the Harvard University Choir at 111th Annual Christmas Carol Service is scheduled for 5 p.m., Dec. 24
First Carol Competition in memory of Mary Otty (Mary Otty Prize 2020): The Bristol Choral Society asked Judith Wier and Stephen Jackson to judge for its carol competition.
Philip Moore: "The Angel Gabriel" commission for the Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols at King's College, Cambridge. Words by Sabine Baring-Gould.
2018
Judith Weir: "O Mercy Divine" commission for the Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols at King's College, Cambridge. Words by Charles Wesley.
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Review of "O Magnum Mysterium: Music from Clifton Cathedral."
Check out Classical Music Daily's review of "O Magnum Mysterium: Music from Clifton Cathedral," directed by Christopher Walker and John Gibbons:
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"While Shepherds Watched" Origins on Classic FM
Check out this Classic FM post on the origins of "While Shepherds Watched":
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Working List of 2019 Christmas Classical and Chorale Recordings
Compiled by Ray Rojas
Updated Jan. 17, 2021.
Adventa: Joachim Bandenhorst and Mogil
The compositions and lyrics of the album are inspired by the classic Icelandic novel 'Aðventa', by Gunnar Gunnarssson. The album invites you into the world of the shepherd Benedikt, who walks alone in the highlands of Iceland in December, the darkest and cruelest month of the year, looking for lost sheep. Through the music you experience the magnificent landscapes, the cold, intense storms, kindness, warmth, stillness, isolation, hope and broken dreams. Mógil is an Iceland/Belgian-based ensemble whose music blends contemporary classical, folk, jazz, minimal and post-rock into a universe that is completely their own. Belgian reedist Joachim Badenhorst composed the bulk of this concept album. For his compositions he drew inspiration from memories of several previous visits to the Icelandic highlands and by submerging into the book 'Aðventa' by Gunnarson.
Augsburger Weihnacht, Ensemble FAMA
A festive Christmas concert of motets, songs and instrumental settings by composers Hans Leo Hassler, Thomas Eisenhuet and Johann Erasmus Kindermann, performed by Ensemble Fama. A 17th century Christmas night in Augsburg.
It is part and parcel of the close relationship to Augsburg shared by all of the featured composers that the concerns of both Christian faiths, the Catholic and the Protestant, are taken into account in their music. The music as such was considered to be above and beyond denomination.
Ben Parry: Music for Christmas, The Chapple Choir of Selwyn College, Cambridge, Ely Cathedral Girls' Choir, directed by Sarah MacDonald
Regent Records is delighted to release this first disc entirely devoted
to the compositions of Ben Parry. There is new choral music for the
entire Christmas season from Advent to Epiphany. In addition to settings
and arrangements of traditional texts there are several new carols with
original words by Garth Bardsley.
Ben Parry is one of the UK's
most distinguished and versatile musicians. He studied at Cambridge,
where he was a member of King's College Choir.
In the mid-1980s he
joined The Swingle Singers as a singer, arranger and music director,
touring globally and performing with some of the world's greatest
artists.
He has subsequently been Director of the Scottish Chamber
Orchestra Chorus, Director of Choral Music at the Royal Scottish Academy
of Music and Drama and conductor of Haddon House Opera. He co-founded
the Dunedin Consort, was Director of Music at St Paul's School, London,
then Director of the Junior Academy at the Royal Academy of Music. He is
currently Artistic Director of the National Youth Choirs of Great
Britain and Assistant Director of Music at King's College, Cambridge.
Ben
has an extensive catalogue of compositions and arrangements including
the popular Faber Carol Book, and music published by Peters Edition and
OUP. He has enjoyed commissions from, among others, the BBC Singers, St
John's College, Cambridge, Chelmsford, Ely, Norwich, Sheffield, and
Worcester Cathedrals. His compositions have been performed at the BBC
Proms and on the TV and radio.
His music is imaginative, colourful, and
impeccably crafted. He was made an Honorary Associate of the Royal
Academy of Music in 2013 for his services to the music industry.
Over
the last few years, The Chapel Choir of Selwyn College, Cambridge, and
its director, Sarah MacDonald, have built an unequalled reputation in
championing contemporary sacred choral music from young emerging
composers, with debut discs of works from Philip Cooke, Ben Ponniah,
Mark Gotham, Iain Quinn, and John Hosking. There have also been discs
from more established composers in the field of church music, including
Paul Spicer, Gary Higginson, and Alan Bullard. Future releases include
discs of music by Stuart Turnbull and Paul Ayres.
Big Band Holiday II: Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra with Wynton Marsalis
Swing into the holiday spirit with BIG BAND HOLIDAYS II, the sequel to the critically acclaimed 2015 release from the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra with Wynton Marsalis.
Featuring original arrangements of holiday classics selected from Big Band Holidays concerts spanning from 2015 to 2018, nine-time GRAMMY Award winner and Pulitzer Prize winner Wynton Marsalis and the JLCO are joined by an all-star assortment of guest vocalists, including Veronica Swift, Denzal Sinclaire, Catherine Russell, Audrey Shakir, and the Queen of Soul herself, Aretha Franklin.
Franklin's stirring solo piano rendition of O Tannenbaum, a surprise performance during the 2015 edition of Big Band Holidays, has never before been released. Other standout tracks include Veronica Swift's vibrant take on the classic ("Everybody's Waitin' For") The Man with the Bag" and Denzal Sinclaire's jazzed-up version of "We Three Kings." An instant classic that captures the magic of an annual NYC holiday tradition, BIG BAND HOLIDAYS II serves up timeless nostalgia right on cue for the most wonderful time of the year.
Label : Blue Engine Records
1. It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year
2. Cool Yule (ft. Catherine Russell)
3. We Three Kings (ft. Denzal Sinclaire)
4. O Tannenbaum (ft. Aretha Franklin)
5. Rise Up, Shepherd, and Follow
6. (Everybody’s Waitin’ for) The Man with the Bag (ft. Veronica Swift)
7. What Will Santa Claus Say? (When He Finds Everybody Swingin’) (ft. Catherine Russell)
8. Brazilian Sleigh Bells
9. Silver Bells (ft. Catherine Russell)
10. Snowfall
11. Silent Night (ft. Denzal Sinclaire and Audrey Shakir)
Christmas, The Gesauldo Six, Owain Park
For centuries Christmas and the surrounding seasons have inspired composers to new heights of invention. This programme reaches across the ages, from the eternal beauty of the Tudor church right up to the twenty-first century, with each piece chosen to evoke a sense of mystery and joy.
In the Renaissance, Advent — the weeks preceding the celebration of Christ’s birth at Christmas — was a time of wonder and reflection. Centuries-old carols tell this story, with some works presented here in their inherited form, others reimagined by skilled arrangers. Pieces that focus on the birth of Christ form the backbone of this collection: Thomas Hardy’s tableau of the scene on Christmas Eve is particularly striking, alongside music that heralds the baby’s arrival and offers insight into the first few weeks of Jesus’s life. Themes and forms are echoed through the ages: two lullabies, though written centuries apart, employ coaxing refrains to be sung to disquieted children; some of the most exquisite melodies are found in works dedicated to Mary.
I hope that we have managed to capture something of the festive spirit, with moments of stillness set against joyful exuberance. It is music that we thoroughly enjoy singing — we all feel a certain magic when we revisit this repertoire towards the end of each year.
"Veni Emmanuel" is an Advent hymn dating back to the Middle Ages, its roots being in plainchant antiphons used in the weeks leading up to Christmas. It is known to many in its English translation, ‘O come, Emmanuel’, heralding the arrival of the saviour. Philip Lawson’s arrangement pays homage to the chant-based melody, the sensitive writing for the accompanying parts gently supporting the familiar tune.
German composer and theorist Michael Praetorius was one of the most versatile and prolific composers of his generation, but is perhaps best known for his adaptations of Protestant hymns. "Nun komm, der Heiden Heiland," a 6 takes a text by Martin Luther — a translation of the hymn ‘Veni, redemptor gentium’ — and sets it to dramatic rhetorical effect, with imitative textures and arresting gestures constantly seizing the listener’s attention.
As each new segment of the melody is introduced it is shortly followed by a series of increasingly florid embellishments — a constant rewiring of the texture that is interrupted with great impact to herald the final line, ‘Gott solch Geburt ihm bestellt’ (‘that God ordained him such a birth’).
"The Annunciation," a setting of words by the Orcadian poet Edwin Muir, was composed in 2011 for the Choir of St John’s College, Cambridge, by British composer Jonathan Harvey who believed this would be his final work. Harvey sought a form of spirituality with unity at its core, with particular emphasis on the interaction between energy and stillness, an approach that finds a parallel in the Advent season’s combination of expectation and reflection. The beginning of each stanza is marked by the introduction of a musical idea that subtly refers back to the opening statement.
A moment of calm in the centre of the work—‘Feathered through time’—is later recaptured, as the ‘deepening trance’ of the final stanza is brought alive with a beautiful series of closing chords.
"Videte miraculum" is a choral respond by Thomas Tallis which uses plainsong both as a solo line and dissolved into a beautifully woven six-part polyphonic texture. Particularly striking is the opening point of imitation on ‘miraculum’—a dissonance repeated in each vocal entry to hypnotic effect—as well as the radiant harmony at ‘Et matrem’ which seems to gain in intensity each time it returns (also notable as the piece is thought to have been written when Queen Mary I was with child).
Cheryl Frances-Hoad’s "The promised light of life" sets a Latin text by St Bede, which is briefly conflated with a short phrase in English from the Revelation of St John the Divine: ‘I am the bright and morning star.’
The voices are gradually revealed through the building-up of chords, an effect repeated at the end of the piece. The middle section is coloured by long melismatic vocal lines, highlighting the word ‘aeternam’ (‘everlasting’).
"Gaudete," meaning ‘rejoice’, is a medieval carol related to the third Sunday of Advent, known as ‘Gaudete Sunday’. The song was first published in about 1582 in a Scandinavian volume called Piae Cantiones. The simple tune of each verse is answered by the pithy refrain or ‘burden’, harmonized in this version by Brian Kay.
Having spent several years collecting folk songs for The English Hymnal, Ralph Vaughan Williams skillfully arranged The truth sent from above with harmonies that echo the style of the Tudor composers he so admired. The text and melody were later used in his Fantasia on Christmas Carols, first performed in Hereford Cathedral in 1912. For the final verse Owain Park has reimagined some of these harmonies in a more contemporary light, subtly referencing chord progressions from Vaughan Williams’s own works.
The German hymn "Es ist ein Ros’ entsprungen" first appeared in print in 1599, and was commonly sung to a melody harmonized by Michael Praetorius ten years later. The first verse describes a rose sprouting from the stem of the Tree of Jesse, an image that was especially popular in medieval times and featured in many works of religious art from the period. Since the nineteenth century other verses have been added, with most focusing on the fragrance of the tender flower which dispels darkness and evil.
"Angelus ad virginem" is a popular medieval carol that appeared in at least six manuscripts from the late thirteenth to the mid-sixteenth century in England, France and Ireland. The words appeared in Latin (‘Angelus ad virginem’) as well as English (‘Gabriel fram evene king’) with subtle differences in the melody across the sources. The complete poem, which tells the story of the angel Gabriel’s visit to Mary, is said to have originally consisted of twenty-seven stanzas, each beginning with the consecutive letter of the alphabet. Here we perform a more modest four verses, gradually adding voices as the piece progresses.
"Lullay my liking" was written by Gustav Holst for a Whitsun festival in Thaxted. The refrain is an early example of an English lullaby; the term ‘lullaby’ is thought to have originated in the sounds made to calm fretful children — in this case ‘lu lu’ or ‘la la’, or ‘bye bye’ as heard in the similarly ancient Coventry Carol. Though it is known that Holst preferred each verse to be sung by the same soprano soloist, here we have assigned each verse to a different singer to bring out the nuances of the text.
John Rutter composed "There is a flower" in 1985 at the invitation of George Guest, then organist and choir director of St John’s College, Cambridge. The words were written by fifteenth-century priest and poet John Audelay, who focuses on the imagery of a ‘Jesse Tree’, whose branches offer a sign of new life and were often depicted in medieval painting and stained glass.
The melody effortlessly rises towards the middle of each verse before falling back down, much like the blooming and withering of a flower. Rutter takes us on a journey through different textures, with moments for solo voice juxtaposed with six-part chordal writing. Particularly effective is the orchestration of the fourth verse, where the upper voices depict flights of angels singing ‘Alleluia’ over the tune in the lower parts.
With over 500 works attributed to his name, Jacob Handl was a prolific composer of the late Renaissance, writing during the Counter-Reformation in Bohemia. The festive motet Canite tuba opens with a striking descending motif that introduces all five lower voices in quick succession. The texture is often busy and involved, with parts occasionally joining together in twos or threes to emphasize important moments in the text. Melodic lines commonly a
Label : Hyperion UK
The Elves have it! Merry Christmas 2 you, from Brass Arts Quintet, because Santa Claus is BAQ in Town! This is the second in the Christmas Brass series from the acclaimed Brass Arts Quintet. In volume one, there were Suites and Treats and now, there's MORE new great music, MORE new great charts and MORE Joy to the World created by this ensemble.
All splendidly performed, recorded and presented in a fun manner. This WILL be your new Christmas favorite because these are not the same old boring charts, same old tired music and worn out oldies. Celebrate your Holiday this season with this fresh, new release, because Christmas is back in town. Label: mark Records.
Christmas at St. George's Windsor, Choir of St. George's Windsor Castle
The Choir of St. George's Chapel, world famous through it's royal patronage, is one of this country's foremost vocal ensembles, participating in daily services throughout the year at its Windsor Castle home. This program collects a wide range of music appropriate to the seasons of Advent, Christmas and Epiphany.
Christmas Carols with Libera
You Tube sensations Libera invite you to celebrate Christmas with their unique sound and 17 of their favorite songs.
Boys from South London with 65 million views on YouTube make up the choral group Libera and are normal kids aged 7 to 16 years. The music they produce is truly extraordinary. In addition to their annual tour to America, Libera appearances include The Today Show, Tonight Show, PBS, NBC, Kennedy Center Honors, Yankee Stadium Papal Mass and many more. Their new album ''Christmas Carols With Libera'' takes on the mellow and the more upbeat songs in this collection and the boys of Libera had great fun.
The likes of ''Ding Dong Merrily On High'' require real precision, as well as purity. Many of the tracks were recorded during a group 'retreat' to a rehearsal space in an old school, this allowed a true live feel to the process.
The boy who took the lead vocal on 'The Snowman' had just turned 9 years old, whilst the introductions to the French 'Noël Nouvelet' and the Irish 'Wexford Carol' are both handled by native French and Gaelic speakers, Libera is as polyglot as ever.
The distinctive sound of Libera has travelled the world in the last few years. The group's albums have topped both mainstream and classical charts in many countries, and their recordings hold their place in top 10s alongside major artists.
Libera's unique sound has endeared the group to fans all over the world, particularly in the USA, the UK, the Philippines, South Korea and Japan, where their CDs top the mainstream and classical charts and where they pack concert halls appearing in their trademark flowing white robes on imaginatively lit stages.
1
In Dulci Jubilo
2
Walking In The Air
3
Ding Dong Merrily On High
4
In the Bleak Mid-Winter
5
Noel Nouvelet
6
Once in Royal David's City
7
I Saw Three Ships
8
What Child is This (Greensleeves)
9
Sing Lullaby (The Infant King)
10
Carol of the Bells
11
Wexford Carol
12
O Little Town of Bethlehem
13
The Angel Gabriel
14
Poor Little Jesus
15
Gaudete
16
Silent Night
17
Do You Hear What I Hear?
Label : Christophorus
Christmas Karl: Solo Guitar Classic, Karl Frederich Grossman Label
:
Music Focus Records
Christmas With True Concord: Carols in the American Voice, True Concord Voices & Orchestra, Eric Holtan, Conductor
Holiday Musical Treasures- Newly Imagined! Eric Holtan, founder and
conductor of True Concord Voices and Orchestra states: "Every December,
True Concord presents its popular songs and Carols by Candlelight
concerts in the Tucson area.
Unique in the local milieu of seasonal
offerings, the focus is on sacred Christmas carols. Even in their
simplest form, carols evoke emotionally powerful memories of personal
and family experiences that enrich and enliven annual holiday
celebrations.
With this album, I wanted to capture the essence of our
much-loved concerts with the mostly familiar carols presented here, but
in musical settings by American composers that are new or not widely
know.
With the kind assistance of advisor Dale Warland who set the
standard of excellence with several cherished Christmas recordings over
the years by The Dale Warland Singers True Concord offers these holiday
treasures, most of which are receiving their world premiere recordings.
This is Christmas With True Concord Carols in the American Voice.This is
the group's second album on Reference Recordings. True Concord's first
album, ""Far in the Heavens," "received a GRAMMY® nomination for Best
Choral Performance, and composer Stephen Paulus won posthumously the
GRAMMY® for Best Classical Contemporary Composition.
Label:
Reference Recordings
Festival of Carols, Sylvia McNair, Soprano; Indianapolis Symphonic Choir, Erik Stark, conductor
A Festival of Nine Lesson and Carols: The Centenary Service
Choir of King's College, Cambridge
Following the success of last year's 100 Years of Nine Lessons & Carols, for 2019 King's College release a deluxe product showcasing the landmark 100th service - the last to be conducted by the outgoing Director of Music, Sir Stephen Cleobury.
Sunhae Ims uniquely enthralling voice and her extraordinary stage presence have made her one of the world's leading sopranos in the opera and concert fields.
Ravishing this is how the Neue Zürcher Zeitung described her very special voice. Under the title of Didone abbandonata, she now interprets opera arias and cantatas for CPO, some of them with strings, others with continuo, by Niccolò Jommelli Giovanni Ristori, Johann Adolph Hasse, Nicola Antonio Porpora, and other composers.
She is accompanied by Teatro del Mondo, an ensemble that has set itself the task of performing Baroque music tracing its origins to changing times. Dido, the Queen of Carthage who fell in love with Aeneas but whom he then left behind on his voyage from Troy to Rome, is one of the great tragic female figures of antiquity. Operas and some cantatas such as those by Ristori and Faggioli attest to the timeless fascination of this story and to its significance for the Italian Baroque opera.
Label : Cpo Records
In this live recording- the second in The Dale Warland Live
series- selected works of two 20th century composers, one British and
the other American, are performed with exquisite choral acumen. The
program consists of Benjamin Britten s acclaimed A Ceremony of Carols
and Daniel Pinkham s Christmas Cantata with brass and organ. In
addition, Pinkham s rarely performed Company at the Creche is included
with four other Christmas works. The distinguished career of choral
composer and conductor Dale Warland spans more than six decades and has
made a profound contribution to the music of our time. As conductor,
composer and founder of the Grammy-nominated Dale Warland Singers, he is
one of only three choral conductors inducted into the American
Classical Music Hall of Fame. Gothic Records.
In Dulci jubilo, Harmonia Sacra, Peter Leech
Harmonia Sacra was formed by Peter Leech in the Summer of 2009. On Advent Sunday in the same year they presented their first concert at the church of St Thomas the Martyr in Bristol, entitled Advent Reflections. The event has since become a permanent and popular musical feature of the pre-Christmas season in that city. 2019 therefore marks the choir's 10th anniversary, so this new CD has been created to celebrate a decade of choral music-making in South-West England (and much further afield), and to represent the diverse repertoire of Advent Reflections concerts.
Lasst Uns Lausches, Sonot Vox, Motley Brass
"The choir Sonat Vox, consisting of young adolescents, was founded in early 2015. Their line-up with tenor, bass and altos is unique and creates an out-standing sound, all based on a common training and experience and developed for years in their youths. Justus Merkel is the ensemble's conductor and a student of Prof. Hans-Chrisoph Rademann at the Carl-Maria von Weber University in Dresden.
He was born 1996 in Ansbach. He experienced his basic music training since 2005 at the well-respected and conducted by Karl-Friedrich Beringer Windsbacher Knabenchor. In this time he sang at almost 750 inland and abroad concerts. As tenor soloist he took part at the debut performance of 'Sonat Vox Laetittia' under Lehmann-Horn's conduction as well as the first recordings of Johann Staden's religious pieces. After his A levels in 2014 he supported Martin Lehmann's, who later on took the leadership of the Windsbacher Knabenchor, daily rehearsals and vocal trainings.
With this album together with the brass quintet Motley Brass, they interpret Christmas repertoire but also German traditional songs like works of F. Silcher and a cappella music like G. P. Palestrina, F. Schubert or R. Mauersberger.
Sonat Vox performs numerous concerts annually under the musical direction of Justus Merkel in churches and concert halls, including in Berlin, Frankfurt, Würzburg, Munich or Erfurt.
In addition to the regular performance calendar, the choir in ist now three-year existence has already won various competitions. In 2016, Sonat Vox achieved both the first place in the men's choirs category, as well as the special prize of the Hessian Prime Minister at the Men's Choir Festival Limburg.
After the choir had qualified with the 1st place at the Bavarian preliminary round for the German Choir Competition of the German Music Council, the singers were able to convince here and secure their 1st place in May 2018. In 2016, the choir around Merkel produced the first CD ""Ubi Caritas Et Amor Deus Ibi Est"" on the label Animato (2017).
Another highlight since the founding of Sonat Vox was the collaboration with Prof. Vytautas Miškinis in the summer of 2018. The musicians were given the opportunity to create the world premiere of a work specially composed for Sonat Vox together with the composer."
Label : Animato
Label : Sony Classical Imp
Make We Mary: Christmas Music for Upper Voices, Benenden Chapel Choir, London Metropolitan Brass, Edward Whiting
This release is an eclectic mix of exciting and distinctive new Christmas music for upper voices by three prominent and admired composers of choral music.
The largest work is the first recording of David Bednall's major cycle of eight carols: "Make we Merry" for upper voices, brass, percussion, and organ, which was commissioned for Benenden Chapel Choir, and first performed by them in 2018. Also featured is the first recording of Bob Chilcott's cycle "The Midnight of your birth", and the first commercial recording of the complete upper-voice version of Snow Angel by Canadian composer, Sarah Quartel. The highly polished performances of Benenden Chapel Choir will both entertain and inspire upper voice ensembles to perform these works for years to come.
Benenden Chapel Choir under the direction of Edward Whiting have built an enviable reputation as one of the UK's finest upper-voice choirs through the critical recognition of their previous recording on Regent of David Bednall's Stabat Mater (REGCD481), with Jennifer Pike (violin), which was a Gramophone Editor's Choice. Label : Regent
David Bednall – Make We Merry†‡
32:12
1
1 Make we merry
2:25
2
2 The time draws near
6:49
3
3 The Christ-child lay on Mary’s lap
3:00
4
4 All this night shrill chanticleer
4:36
5
5 Moonless darkness stands between
4:16
6
6 Sweet was the song the Virgin sang
4:07
7
7 Let others look for pearl and gold
2:32
8
8 Make we joy now
4:24
Bob Chilcott – The Midnight of your Birth
16:46
9
1 The Angel did Fly
4:04
10
2 The Blackbird with One White Feather
2:34
11
3 Kindness (A raven flew to Bethlehem)
3:44
12
4 The Midnight of your Birth
3:13
13
5 The Rain-Tree Carol
3:11
Sarah Quartel – Snow Angel*
16:18
14
1 Prologue
3:23
15
2 Creatures of Light
3:00
16
3 God will give orders
2:23
17
4 Sweet child x
2:12
18
5 Snow Angel
Mozart Classics for Christmas
Label : Mozartiana Classics (Naxos Deutschland Musik & Video Vertriebs-)
Nowell Synge we bothe and som: A Feast of Christmas Music in Medieval England
Gothic Voices
Gothic Voices reputation for the originality of its programming is cemented with its first recording of medieval Christmas music, in which Julian Podger reimagines a fifteenth-century carol evening.
Mirroring the modern practice of performing mostly music from the preceding centuries alongside some contemporary repertoire, the programme includes late medieval English carols, chant, mono-and polyphonic songs and motets for the Advent and Christmas season, focusing on Mary, her Annunciation and the birth of Jesus.
Larger-scale festive motets and mass movements by English late medieval celebrities John Dunstaple and Leonel Power also feature. The evening concludes with a summons to wake up to the significance of Christmas, with the conductus call "Resonet, intonet" introducing the carols "Nowell syng we bothe al and som" and "Nowell: Owt of your slepe" and the great Christmas chant "Puer natus est nobis," arranged here into a joyful finale. This recording has been widely anticipated since a performance of this repertoire in December 2016 was chosen by BBC Music Magazine as its number one unmissable Christmas event.
Label: Outthere Music
Nuit de Noel
Label
:
Alpha We bring together on two albums the most beautiful songs from Noël
baroque, a release by the Maîtrise de Radio France and Les Musiciens de
Saint Julien under François Lazarevitch that has enjoyed great success
in recent years, completed by Noëls en Pays dOc and other ancient
Christmas carols.
The second album presents excerpts from great sacred
classical masterpieces (such as Handel's Messiah and Vivaldi's Gloria by
Hervé Niquet, and Bachs B minor Mass by Raphaël Pichon) as well as
instrumental pieces including Corellis Christmas Concerto by Amandine
Beyer and excerpts from Bach's Brandenburg Concertos by Café Zimmermann
and Winter from Vivaldi's Four Seasons. An ideal programme of music to
accompany Christmas Eve. This double album is presented in an elegant
popup that can be placed at the foot of the tree when the time comes!
Secret Life of Carols: 800 Years of Christmas Music
Clare Norburn, voice; Ariane Prussner, voice, frame drum; Jean Kelly, Celtic and medieval harps; Kaisa Pulkkinen, baroque and medieval harps
Label : First Hand
Stille Nacht, Hailige Nach
Delta Music Media
Trumpets in Concert: Colours of Christmas
In this wonderful recording, baroque splendor, atmospheric and stylish
elegance and cheerful Christmas melodies are put together in masterful
arrangements for a festive Advent trumpet gala. The outstanding
trumpeters Gernot Kahofer, Manuel Lichtenwöhrer and Leonhard Leeb are
supported by the organist Bernhard Macheiner and the drummer Thomas
Mair.
Noble-blown trumpet concerts and poetic enchantment that will
captivate you. The ensemble from Vienna is praised by critics and
audiences worldwide. Artistic brilliance and diverse, exciting programs
merge into an evening full of emotions, regardless of whether they play
in a concert hall, a church or a cathedral! The three trumpeters sound
classics in new tones.
All ensemble members are members of various
ensembles, bands and formations and are outstanding soloists.
First-class musicianship and top-notch performance, as a well-known
conductor enthuses, is a matter of course with this ensemble. The Vienna
Wind School is world famous - it is a breathtaking experience to hear
it live. Classical arrangements of famous works of classical music
combine with festive baroque, pop songs and elegant original
compositions. Label
:
Ars Produktion
Twas the Night Before Christmas, Burning River Brass
Classical meets Christmas in this latest offering from the Burning River
Brass. Beautifully arranged Christmas favorites from this tremendous
group of brass and percussion! Since 1996, Burning River Brass has been
dazzling audiences from Alaska to Taiwan with ''power and virtuosity,''
''harmonious blend,'' and ''consistently stirring performances.''
Composed of twelve of the finest brass and percussion players in the
country, Burning River Brass is an ensemble on fire! The original
inspiration behind Burning River Brass was to give great players who
were also good friends a chance to play together on a consistent basis.
Soon after the first rehearsal in May 1996, BRB began to grow rapidly.
The ensemble made its debut in September of 1996 in Tremont, Ohio under
the auspices of Arts Renaissance Tremont and by 1998 was touring
nationally.
Label
:
Azica
This album celebrates the musical heritage of the Christian feast of
the Epiphany, the revelation of the infant Christ to the world. Like the
feast itself, the music is traditionally centred on the visit of the
Magi to Bethlehem and the star that led them to the Holy Family.
Beautifully performed by the choir of Worchester College, Oxford and
director Thomas Allery, this album is the perfect musical accompaniment
to the festive season.
This recording opens with the rousing hymn "O worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness", by the prolific
hymn-writer the Revd John Samuel Bewley Monsell (d.1875), taking
inspiration from Psalm 96 and the gifts of the Magi. It was written in
1863, one year before the re-decoration of Worcester College Chapel. The
album then moves through a variety of composers including Thomas
Tomkins (d.1656), best known as the organist of Worcester Cathedral,
with his anthem for lower voices, "O Lord, how manifold are thy works".
Works by Buxtehude, Ireland, Handl, Langlais and Pachelbel are also
included.
The Choir of Worcester College, which sings four times a
week during the University Term, engages in a wide range of musical
commitments including concerts, recordings, and touring. The composition
of the choir is unique in Oxford, with the choral scholars being joined
twice a week by boy choristers from Christ Church Cathedral School.
The
choir has recently toured to Italy and Germany and, within the UK, to
Winchester, Worcester, and Gloucester Cathedrals, and has released
several CDs. The choristers frequently perform repertoire for upper
voices alone, and in this formation have performed in Bristol, St
Michael at the Northgate in Oxford and in Coventry Cathedral.
Label:
Herald
The Lay Clerks present a joyful album of Christmas favourites to help you welcome in the 'most wonderful time of the year'.
Performed
by The Lay Clerks of Guildford Cathedral, in superb new arrangements
penned by Richard Whennell, this fine selection of seasonal music
features both sacred and popular songs which have become synonymous with
our traditional Christmas celebrations. Festive, sentimental and
sometimes nostalgic in tone, these songs hearken back to simpler times
and express perfectly the desire to be at home with our loved ones to
share these special occasions.
Included here are songs for
children ("Santa Claus is coming to Town") and songs to celebrate the
season ("It's the most wonderful time of the year" and "Winter Wonderland")
as well as sentimental ballad-style classics like "Have yourself a merry
little Christmas" and "White Christmas." You'll find other Christmas hits
like "Let it Snow!" and Mel Torme's "Christmas Song" (Chestnuts roasting on
an open fire) alongside beautiful carols such as "Silent Night" and Harold
Darke's "In the Bleak Midwinter." Stand by for a Ska version of "Mary's
Boy Child" and a Memphis Gospel rendition of "Adolph Adam's O Holy Night."
Settle back for an hour of beautiful Christmas music created to warm your heart and make your season bright.
The
Lay Clerks is a group of professional singers employed at the
internationally renowned Guildford Cathedral Choir. In addition to their
cathedral duties of singing the daily religious offices, taking part in
cathedral concerts, broadcasting and touring with the Choir, they are
all established musicians in their own right.
They perform variously on
operatic, oratorio and concert stages around the world, teach singing,
conduct choirs and provide management for other musicians and
orchestras. In their spare time, two of them even provide a sheet music
rental service to choirs and orchestras throughout the UK. As a group
they enjoy nothing more than coming together every day to share their
love of singing glorious music in their own wonderful, inspirational
cathedral.
Following the great success of his previous Christmas album Festive
Frolic, with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra for Naxos, Roderick Elms'
new festive CD, A Windy Christmas, features new and light-hearted
compositions and arrangements for the festive season.
As the
title suggests, the music is performed by (mostly) wind-powered
instruments. The Aurora Ensemble (wind quintet), Chaconne Brass (brass
quintet), Illumina Duo (Ellie Lovegrove trumpet and Richard Moore
organ), John Anderson oboe, Joanna Smith piano. All the choir items are
performed by The Joyful Company of Singers conducted by Bramwell Tovey,
the new Principal Conductor of the BBC Concert Orchestra.
Premiere recording of the transcriptions for recorder by J Walsh.
Remastered in 2019. Period instruments. Includes "Christmas Concerto."
The New York City Children's Chorus (NYCCC) is pleased to present its
second album, Christmas in New York. Before we sang the final notes of
our 2015 debut album, Simple Gifts, we knew this project was waiting for
us, and for you.
The phrase 'Christmas in New York' is spoken with
great excitement by millions of tourists who visit our city in hopes of
capturing the joy and beauty that buoys our spirits each December.
For
New Yorkers, it means treks to the Metropolitan Museum of Art to see the
Baroque Crêche or the Natural History Museum s Origami Tree; hearing
Musica Sacra singing Handel s Messiah at Carnegie Hall; or stopping to
see the decorated windows of favorite shops and sample the seasonal
sweets from a favorite bakery.
For the New York City Children's Chorus,
Christmas in New York means singing our favorite holiday carols and
songs. The glee our children express when they open their folders and
find "Carol of the Bells" and "Deck the Hall" are only rivaled by the joy I
feel in teaching these Christmas favorites, year after year. In
reflecting on the experience of making this album, I find myself
extremely proud of the NYCCC choristers commitment to performing such a
wide variety of music with beauty, style and integrity, and I am
delighted to share it with you. [Mary Huff, October 2019]
The
NYCCC at Madison Avenue Presbyterian Church is a graded choral program
for children in the metropolitan New York City area who wish to receive
training in the art of singing in a rigorous and rewarding choral
environment.
Founded in 2012, the NYCCC is comprised of nine choral
ensembles for children ages four through eighteen, steeped in the bel
canto tradition, exploring a range of music from Bach to Broadway. The
advanced performing ensembles heard in this recording have appeared at
New York s most prestigious venues, including Carnegie Hall, Radio City
Music Hall, St. Patrick's Cathedral, Cathedral of St. John the Divine
and Town Hall.
Recent appearances include performances of Vaughan
Williams' "Sancta Civitas," J.S. Bach's St. Matthew Passion and
appearances on NBC's Today Show and Amazon Video's The Marvelous Mrs.
Maisel. The NYCCC has also performed famous works by Schubert, Britten,
Faure and Vaughan Williams. The choristers have performed concert tours
in Boston, Nashville and Washington, D.C., and abroad in Austria,
Canada, Germany and Spain.
Mary Wannamaker Huff is Artistic
Director of the New York City Children s Chorus and Associate Director
of Music at Madison Avenue Presbyterian Church, where she conducts and
plays the organ for liturgies and concerts with the church choirs and
the Saint Andrew Chorale and Orchestra.
Her children's choirs have
toured internationally and performed in New York City s concert halls,
churches and on television. They have also sung for the Tribeca Film
Festival, Nintendo and joined Nathan Lane in "The Man Who Came to Dinner." Individual choristers under Huff's guidance have performed in Broadway
shows and at the Museum of Modern Art; one of her chorister's solo
performances in Leonard Bernstein's Chichester Psalms was hailed as one
of New York Magazine's Top Ten Classical Events in NYC.
Andrew
Henderson has served as Director of Music and Organist at Madison Avenue
Presbyterian Church since 2005, where he oversees an extensive
liturgical and choral program and the Saint Andrew Music Society's Music
on Madison concert series.
Dr. Henderson, also the Associate Organist
at New York City's Temple Emanu-El, is chair of the organ department at
the Manhattan School of Music and the organ instructor at Teachers
College at Columbia University. A native of Thorold, Ontario, he holds
degrees in music from Cambridge, Yale and The Juilliard School.
Label
:
Msr Classics
Off genre recommendations
Label
:
Indesens (Klassik Center Kassel)
Broadway
The Norm Lewis Christmas Album
Erin Harpe & the Delta Swingers are releasing their popular 2018
holiday release, the Christmas Swing on VINYL on November 8, 2019. Erin
Harpe has been called one of the most dynamic, talented and exciting
roots rocking blues women on the scene by Living Blues Magazine.
Erin
Harpe & the Delta Swingers, her Boston Music Award-winning band,
released their first ever holiday album, THE CHRISTMAS SWING, on their
own Juicy Juju label, through the VizzTone Label Group in 2018.
Following up their acclaimed 2017 sophomore album, BIG ROAD, the new
holiday album is a fun seasonal romp chock full of hooky
blues-guitar-fueled gems that you ll want to listen to each year as the
holidays approach.
CHRISTMAS SWING features ten songs ' including Erin s
own arrangements of traditionals and songs by Chuck Berry, Bessie
Smith, Lightnin Hopkins, Leadbelly, Bo Carter, and a UK band Erin
discovered called Lil Lost Lou. Title track The Christmas Swing is a
re-working of their 2014 hit The Delta Swing, co-penned with special
guest Richard Rosenblatt (who also lends harmonica).
Building on her
last album, Erin s guitar playing shines as she plays a number of
different styles, ranging from acoustic fingerstyle on Bessie Smith's "At
the Christmas Ball" (a duet with pianist John Juxo), to the raw electric
guitar on Lightnin Hopkins Merry Christmas , to the early rock n roll
licks of Chuck Berry's "Run Run Rudolph." Her well-known kazoo also makes
an appearance on the Smith tune and the (not really holiday-themed, but
festive) Bo Carter number "Drink and Get Drunk," as well as on closer "Auld Lang Syne."
The record features Erin Harpe on electric, slide and
acoustic guitars and vocals, as well kazoo and percussion; Jim
Countryman on bass, claps, and snaps; Matt Charles Prozialeck on
harmonicas; and Chris Anzalone (Roomful of Blues) on drums and
percussion.
With special guests John Juxo on piano and Richard
Rosenblatt on harmonica. We had a lot of fun making this album. It s a
holiday album for music fans that don t necessarily like Christmas
music, declares Erin, it s just good music, that will make your holidays
more fun! Whether you celebrate Christmas, or just like holiday music,
Erin guarantees fans will love this non-traditional take on Christmas
music!
Label
:
Vizz Tone
O Holy Night, London Choral Sinfonia, Michael Waldron
The young professional singers of Michael Waldron's London Choral
Sinfonia open fresh perspectives on the music of Christmas with a
captivating debut album for Orchid Classics. O Holy Night unites
familiar carols arranged by Sir David Willcocks, Andrew Carter and Max
Pappenheim with little-known seasonal treasures by, among others, Peter
Maxwell Davies, Humphrey Clucas, Robert Saxton and ex-Swingle Singer,
Carol Canning. The track list also includes Lo, He comes with clouds
descending and O Holy Night in spellbinding arrangements by composer and
theatre sound designer Max Pappenheim, former organ scholar at Trinity
College, Cambridge. London Choral Sinfonias Musical Director, Michael
Waldron, built his Christmas album around five traditional carols. The
recordings repertoire mix includes Martin Neary's fresh take on We Three
Kings, a dramatic setting of the Coventry Carol by Jonathan Rathbone,
Richard Pantcheff's haunting A Christmas Carol, and the beguiling No
Small Wonder by Paul Edwards.
100 Christmas Classic
Certainly, the 'quietest time of year' is also the time when music is to be most frequently heard - not only in public, in shops or markets, but also in the countryside, where Christmas is the time when perhaps the most singing is done. The music author Marius Schneider once underlined this fact by writing: ""God hungers for songs.""
And thus, the time which celebrates the symbolic birth of the Lord is a great time for music - even for people who may have no direct religious beliefs. With this 5CD-Set Capriccio presents in total 100 Classical Christmas titles, sung by most famous choruses and soloists. And draws a bow from the high classical Christmas Oratorio by Bach to more simple songs from the countryside. And of course the most famous song can't be missed: "Silent Night, Holy Night."
Label : Capriccio
Schütz's Christmas Story is an absolute delight from beginning to end. Its charming tableaux of angels, shepherds and wise men stand in stark contrast to the composer's old age and constrained circumstances. On this recording from Yale Schola Cantorum and David Hill, it is the jubilant climax to a program of Christmas motets from the 1640s.
Label: HYPERION
The Spanish 'Golden Age' witnessed an astonishing musical flowering, fully worthy of the nation's new-found preeminence on the world stage.
Focusing on works for Christmas and Epiphany, Stile Antico explores this glittering musical treasury, drawing together an irresistible mix of sumptuous polyphony and infectiously joyful folk dances.
The centrepiece of the is the superbly rich and luminous "Missa Beata Dei genitrix Maria" by Alonso Lobo. Interspersed between it's movements are motets by Tomás Luis de Victoria, Francisco Guerrero and Christóbal de Morales, an exuberant 'ensalada' by Mateo Flecha, and classic villancicos - traditional carols using folk melodies.
Label : Musikmuseu (Note 1 Musikvertrieb)
Ukrainian Folk Music: Christmas Songs, Brother's Ivan
Weihnachtskonzert Der 1000 Stimmen
Honorable Mentions:
Yulesville!: 33 Rockn' Rolln' Christmas Blasters for the Cool Season
Rare and interesting recordings at a reasonable price within Bear Family's Seasons series. The selected titles are more about Christmas on the Mother Road 'Route 66' with a hearty Christmas cactus, but also the peaceful winter wonderland is not missed out here! Besides big names of Rock'n'Roll, like The Drifters with Clyde McPhatter, Paul Anka, The Penguins and The Four Seasons, there are plenty of rarities to be heard, many of them for the first time on CD!
Rebellious Christmas in Yulesville! Christmas is generally regarded as the feast of love, even if Christmas is not always beautiful for everyone. The Rock'n'Roll contemporaries of the 1950s already recognized this when they tried to break out of established family traditions. The songs in this compilation represent both opposites sharply to each other. On the one hand Paul Anka's It's Christmas Everywhere, with all its lights and snowflakes, but Bobbie & Boobie keep it cool with their Cool, Cool Christmas.
And in-between Patti Page's Santa Claus dances the boogie woogie and Edd 'Kookie' Byrnes teaches us the Christmas time under the Beatniks! Christmas Parade of Rarities Of course, part of the concept is to focus on rare recordings. Recordings that are not to be found on every Christmas collection, which is admittedly not that easy. But we found what we were looking for and can even present a number of songs that haven't been available on CD before. For example a complete single from the Doo Wop section of The Melodeers!
Very rare, and the single A- and B-sides by Cordell Jackson can also be heard, a female rockabilly guitarist and head of the Moon label from Memphis, in contrast to Memphis' famous Sun label (Moon - Sun!). Many Rockabilly and Blues hits are featured, even some jazzy titles. It's well worth it again! Naturally there are also notes to each song on the CD, as well as many illustrations in the 28-page booklet.
Label : Bear Family
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