2025: Working List of New Classical and Choral Christmas Albums
The Advent Antiphons
by St Martin's Voices & Andrew Earis
Seven world-premiere recordings from contemporary composers
including Philip Moore and Bernadette Farrell, each offering a new setting of
one of the ancient Advent 'O Antiphons'.
Commissioned by The Church of England for Advent 2025, these are the first
tracks released from St Martin's Voices' forthcoming album of music for Evening
Prayer, 'The Blessing of Light'.
https://stmartinsvoices.hearnow.com/the-advent-antiphons
The motet for solo voice and two dessus, usually two violins, and the cantata with instrumental accompaniment originated in Italy at the dawn of the 17th century. The genre was introduced to France by Marc-Antoine Charpentier and by travelling Italian musicians and rapidly became one of the key showpieces of Italian taste and style. The genre was deployed superbly in the early 18th century by two magnificent composers who were practically contemporaries: Andre Campra and Nicolas Bernier.Campra's natural attraction to Italian music is easily explained, as he was the son of an Italian doctor living in Aix-en-Provence and was also a pupil of the great Poitevin in the same city. Bernier, if we are to believe certain sources, was a pupil in Rome of the Venetian Antonio Caldara, one of the most important composers of his time.
https://outhere-music.com/en/albums/venite-exultemus-campra-bernier
This album from St Martin’s Voices under director Andrew Earis brings together eighteen Christmas choral works by a wide range of contemporary composers. Telling the story of the nativity, music by Cecilia McDowall, Gabriel Jackson and James Whitbourn is featured alongside pieces from the next generation of choral composers including Grace-Evangeline Mason, Kerensa Briggs and Emily Hazrati.
From settings of ancient texts such as O magnum mysterium and Adam lay ybounden to more modern poetry by Ursula Askham Fanthorpe and Charles Anthony Silvestri, the music spans a variety of styles and moods.
Thoughtfully curated and stylishly performed, these premiere recordings narrate the Christmas story from prophecy to birth, adding fresh material to the festive repertoire and highlighting the ongoing creativity of British choral music.
Vicente Chavarría (b.1988)
1. Adam lay ybounden
Charlotte Baskerville (b.1994)
2. A tender shoot
Becky McGlade (b.1974)
3. O come, O come, Emmanuel
Cecilia McDowall (b.1951)
4. Tota pulchra es
Robert Sharpe (b.1971)
5. There is no rose
Cecilia McDowall
6. Make we joy now in this fest
Gabriel Jackson (b.1962)
7. Christmas Eve
David Bednall (b.1979)
8. BC:AD – This was the moment
Esther Bersweden (b.1996)
9. O magnum mysterium
Grace-Evangeline Mason (b.1994)
10. Hodie Christus natus est
Owain Park (b.1993)
11. A babe is born
Alan Bullard (b.1947)
12. Sweet babe, sang she
Kerensa Briggs (b.1991)
13. Seeking You
Cecilia McDowall
14. The Magi
James Whitbourn (1963–2024)
15. Our Gold
Ben Ponniah (b.1984)
16. The Golden Carol
Emily Hazrati (b.1998)
17. Coventry Carol
Ed Newton-Rex (b.1987)
18. I heard the bells on Christmas Day
https://www.resonusclassics.com/products/a-babe-is-born-music-for-christmas
Following the success of their 2023 digital EP, Rutter Orchestral Carols, the Choir of King’s College, Cambridge, releases a new album for Christmas 2025, featuring a selection of arrangements and original works for choir and orchestra under the direction of Daniel Hyde. Recorded in the beloved Chapel of King’s College Cambridge, All the Stars Looked Down sees the choir performing alongside Britten Sinfonia once again, and includes beautiful orchestral arrangements of Christmas carols by John Rutter alongside a selection of both well-loved and lesser-known carols by the great choral composers who have influenced him, including Philip Ledger, David Willcocks and Ralph Vaughan Williams. Woven throughout the album are works that are especially meaningful to the Choir and its community and the album’s title track, John Rutter’s All the Stars Looked Down, is dedicated to the late Sir Stephen Cleobury.
1. Hark! the herald angels sing | Felix Mendelssohn, arr. Sir David Willcocks
2. A spotless rose | Sir Philip Ledger
3. All bells in paradise | Sir John Rutter
4. Sussex Carol | English traditional, arr. Ralph Vaughan Williams, orch. Daniel Hyde
5. O Holy Night | Adolphe Adam, arr. Sir John Rutter
6. O little town of Bethlehem | Sir Henry Walford Davies, orch. Sir Stephen Cleobury & Daniel Hyde
7. Five Meditations for Orchestra: III. Candlelight | Sir John Rutter
8. Sans Day Carol | Cornish traditional, arr. Sir John Rutter
9. Unto us is born a son | From ‘Piae Cantiones’, arr. Sir David Willcocks
10. Five Meditations for Orchestra: I. What sweeter music | Sir John Rutter
11. Hereford Carol | Traditional, arr. Christopher Robinson, orch. Sir John Rutter
12. Child in a manger | Traditional, arr. Sir John Rutter 13. Dormi, Jesu | Sir John Rutter
14. Nativity Carol | Sir John Rutter 15. All the stars looked down | Sir John Rutter
16. Silent night | Franz Xaver Gruber, arr. Sir John Rutter
17. Away in a manger | English traditional, arr. David Hill
18. O come, all ye faithful | John Francis Wade, arr. Sir David Willcocks
This item will be released 21 November 2025.
https://kingscollegechoir.com/recording/all-the-stars-looked-down/
This album presents a stunning collection of recent cantatas
by acclaimed composer Cecilia McDowall, performed by the Choir of Royal
Holloway, Orchestra Nova, and conductor George Vass. Known for her ‘spicy
rhythms and colours’ (Gramophone), McDowall’s music weaves vibrant textures and
emotional depth, drawing listeners into a compelling journey.
The featured works explore diverse themes, from the haunting
beauty of ice in The Ice is Listening, to the celestial wonders of Music of the
Stars. Also included is the chamber orchestra version of A Winter’s Night, a
joyful Christmas cantata.
McDowall’s distinct choral voice shines through, blending
introspective reflection with exuberant energy, making this an essential
addition to the choral repertoire.
The Ice is Listening (2023)
1. Solid Waters
2. The ice is listening
3. Moulin
A Winter’s Night (2014)
4. In dulci jubilo
5. O little one sweet
6. Noël nouvelet
7. Still, still, still
8. Sussex Carol
Music of the Stars (2022)
9. Music of the Stars
10. The hardest thing
11. The Gift to Sing
Bird of Time (2022)
12. The Bird of Time
13. Aubade
14. To be Bird
https://www.resonusclassics.com/collections/resonus-classics/products/cecilia-mcdowall-cantatas
Recorded in the middle of a European tour in December 2024, this release marks the Monteverdi Choir and English Baroque Soloists debut of acclaimed French conductor Christophe Rousset. Rousset brings his Gallic elegance and refinement to Charpentier's Baroque Christmas music - the motet In Nativitatem and the Messe de minuit pout Noel, along with the instrumental noels, or Christmas carols, that form the basis of Charpentier's unique mass.
Label: Sdg
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A thrilling mix of carols with large choirs,
orchestra and organ, performed in one of the most magnificent cathedrals in
the United Kingdom. https://www.prioryrecords.co.uk/Thrilling-carols-Liverpool-Tracey-Mannings |
Skylark’s A Christmas Carol brings Charles
Dickens’s beloved tale to life through Tony Award-winning actress Christine
Baranski’s narration and composer Benedict Sheehan’s original choral score.
A Christmas Collection
Top of Form
Preparations
[1] Deck the Hall – Welsh traditional (arr. Keith Roberts)
[2] There Is No Rose – Paul Spicer (words: early 15th
century)
[3] Hymn to the Virgin – Benjamin ritten (words: anon, 1500)
[4] The Clouded Heaven – Judith Bingham (words from a prayer
by Lancelot Andrewes and from Residence at Cambridge by William
Wordsworth)
[5] There is No Rose – Simon Whalley (words: early 15th
century)
[6] This Is The Truth – English Traditional (arr. Leo
Hussain)
[7] A Christmas Blessing – Ralph Allwood (words by Lydia
Smallwood)
[8] Stille Nachte – Franz Gruber (arr. Ralph allwood, words
by Josef Mohr)
[9] Still, Still, Still – Andrew Gant (words: traditional
German)
[10] The Lamb – John Taverner (words by William Blake)
[11] The Darkest Midnight In December (English traditional)
[12] Rudolph, The Red-Nosed Reindeer – John Marks (arr.
Keith Roberts)
Christmas Day
[13] Ding Dong! Merrily On High – French tune (arr. Ralph
Allwood, words by G. R. Woodward)
[14] Bethlehem Down – Peter Warlock (words by Bruce Blunt)
[15] Balulalow – James Burton (words by James, John and
Robert Wedderburn)
[16] Jingle Bells – J. Pierpont (arr. Ralph Allwood, words
by J. Pierpont)
Holy Innocents
[17] Lully, Lulla, thou Little Tiny Child – Kenneth Leighton
(words: 15th century Coventry Mystery Play)
New Year
[18] We Wish You A Merry Christmas – Traditional (arr. Ralph
Allwood)
Epiphany
[19] How Far Is It To Bethlehem – Traditional (arr. Robert
Rice, words by Frances Chesterton)
[20] We Three Kings – John Henry Hopkins (arr. Ralph
Allwood, words by J. H. Hopkins)
Festivities
[21] Auld Lang Syne – Scottish Traditional (arr. Robert
Rice)
[22] Wonderful Christmastime – Paul McCartney (arr. Robert
Rice)
https://signumrecords.com/product/mater-ora-filium-choral-music-by-bax-and-villette-copy/SIGCD956/#
An album of newly recorded works for Christmas by rising star composer Kristina Arakelyan. This is the first recording by the Choir of King’s College London, conducted by Joseph Fort on Signum Records.
“While preparing this album, I have been struck by many aspects of Kristina’s music, and have talked with her about it at length… She approaches the compositional task as an exercise in conveying this emotion and stirring it in her listeners, and I hope that this comes through in our performances” – Joseph Fort
[1] Echo (from Seascapes)
[2] O Adonai
[3] Sanctus
[4] Te lucis ante terminum
[5] Evening Prayer
A Christmas Offering
[6] i. Gaudete (plainchant)
[7] ii.Gaudete
[8] iii. There is no rose
[9] iv. Alleluia!
[10] v. Mary, flower of flowers all
[11] vi. Interlude
[12] vii. Te Deum laudamus
[13] viii.Out of the East
[14] ix. Jesu, Jesu
[15] x. Now sing we with angelis
[16] Ave maris stella
[17] You Know Me
[18] Christmas Lullaby
[19] Dreamland
01: Hodie Christus natus est - Clive Osgood
02: Coventry Carol - Clive Osgood
03: Adam lay ybounden - Clive Osgood
04: Sir Christëmas - Clive Osgood
05: In excelsis gloria - Clive Osgood
06: Omnis mundus - Clive Osgood
07: Resonet in laudibus - Clive Osgood
08: Puer nobis nascitur - Clive Osgood
Let It Swing - Christmas with Salaputia Brass Salaputia
Brass
When the twelve “guys” (Latin: salaputia) of the brass
ensemble Salaputia Brass set out to reinvent Christmas, you can look forward to
the successful group's new album at Berlin Classics. It is titled “Let it swing
– Christmas with Salaputia Brass” and is already the ensemble's fifth album. It
features Christmas classics, reimagined in sophisticated arrangements and
staged with jazzy lightness. Anyone who thinks they've heard everything there
is to hear in “All I Want For Christmas Is You,” “Driving Home for Christmas,”
or “Let it Snow” will be surprised here. Familiar melodies in a fresh guise!
Discover this collection of contemporary carols alongside well-known favourites, which seeks to draw the listener deeper into the remarkable story of the birth of the Christ Child.
Performed by North Yorkshire’s professional soloists’ choir Jervaulx Singers with Charlie Gower-Smith and pianist Alison Frances Gill, this selection of carols features contemporary compositions alongside well-known favourites.
https://conviviumrecords.co.uk/product/in-the-stillness/#
Ned Rorem, renowned for his vivid art songs and unapologetic
diaries, also composed a vast and underappreciated body of choral works. This
album, featuring St Martin's Voices, showcases selections from his impressive
choral output spanning seven decades.
From the playful intricacies of Festive Alleluias (1992) to
the lush harmonies of Two Psalms and a Proverb (1962), Rorem’s music for
chorus—often imbued with religious texts despite his devout atheism—reveals his
gift for blending homophony with subtle counterpoint. The album includes
pieces like the lyrical Sing my soul, his wondrous love (1955), the haunting Canticle
of the Lamb (1971), and the entrancing O Magnum Mysterium (1978), offering a
compelling cross-section of Rorem’s choral imagination.
With rich emotional depth, innovative text-setting, and
surprising rhythmic shifts, these works—many previously overlooked—finally
receive the attention they so richly deserve.
1. Festive Alleluias
2. How lovely is your dwelling place
(arr. for choir and string quartet by Tom Shorter)
3. Sing my soul, his wondrous love
4. O magnum mysterium
5. Canticle of the Lamb
6. Little lamb, who made thee?
(arr. for choir and string quartet by Tom Shorter)
Seven Motets for the Church Year
7. While all things were in quiet silence (Christmas)
8. Before the morning star begotten (Epiphany)
9. Lay up yourselves (Ash Wednesday)
10. Praise him who was crucified (Easter)
11. God is gone up (Ascension)
12. Today the holy spirit appeared (Pentecost)
13. Rejoice we all in the Lord (All Saints)
Two Psalms and a Proverb
14. Behold how good and how pleasant it is
15. Wounds without Cause
16. How long wilt thou forget me, O Lord
Four Madrigals
17. Parting
18. Flowers for the Graces
19. Love
20. An Absent Friend
Ode to Man
21. Strophe A
22. Antistrophe A
23. Strophe B
24. Antistrophe B
25. Love divine, all loves excelling
Discover this collection of twenty-one songs reflecting contemporary experiences of, and attitudes towards, the winter season, performed by soprano Rebecca Lea and pianist Caroline Jaya-Ratnam.
A new collection of twenty-one songs reflecting contemporary experiences of, and attitudes towards, the winter season from composers spanning a range of experiences and backgrounds. Many, though not all, are settings of secular texts.
Whilst more traditional winter themes do recur within the songs – those of cold, loss, stillness, grief and darkness – those of belief, faith, and hope, offer an emotional counterbalance.
Each individual composer approaches and explores these themes from their own perspective, lending their voice to a musical tapestry, expressing what it means to reflect upon and celebrate the season of winter today.
The songs are to be published by Hal Leonard as an anthology in November 2025.01: Dust of Snow - Jamie W. Hall
02: North - Errollyn Wallen
03: On White Meadows - Judith Weir
04: Sundowning - Ben Nobuto
05: Winter Spell - Héloïse Werner
06: Frost Fair - Adam Gorb07: The Darkest Midnight - Eoghan
Desmond
07: The Darkest Midnight – Eoghan Desmond
08: Winter Fragments - Jessica Dannheisser
09: Christmas Eve at Sea - Cecilia McDowall
10: Cradle Song - Helen Neeves
11: Natural State - James Weeks
12: Twelfth Night - Martin Bussey
13: The Core of Time - Cheryl Frances-Hoad
14: Villanelle: New Year's Eve - Peter Foggitt
A magical duet harp and vocal album of Christmas songs: Nordic Celtic originals and stunning new arrangements of timeless classics! Every track on Nordic Nights has its own unique flair. Combining harps, voices, and a fair bit of Christmas magic, Nordic Nights will be the perfect soundtrack for your Holiday season for years to come!
https://www.harptwins.com/product-page/nordic-nights-cd-autographed
1 March & Walk
2 Sugarhigh Fairy
3 Tarantulas Bite
4 In Between
5 3-Pack
6 Sketches of 1001 Nights
7 Dance to the East
8 Pas de Doux
9 Valse des
Fleurs No. 2
10 O
Jesulein Zart
11 Rosu Dejte
12 The Snow It Melts the Soonest
13 Noël Nouvellet
14 Corpus Christi Carol
15 Carol of the Bells
16 Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas
17 Weihnachts Medley
18 Adeste Fideles
19 Es ist ein Schnee Gefallen
O HOLY NIGHT: Christmas carols from St John’s
The second album from the Choir of St John’s with their new music director – Christopher Gray.
At the centre of the programme are the atmospheric Quatre
Motets pour le temps de Noël by Francis Poulenc, and the heartfelt Three
Carol-An-thems by Herbert Howells who directed the Choir here at St John’s
during the Second World War. Other items include the beautiful carol John
Rutter wrote for the Choir in 1985, There is a flower, and the haunting Peace
on earth by Master of the King’s Music, Errollyn Wallen.
“My aim with this album has not been to break new ground
with repertoire, but to ensure that classics remain fresh for the current
generation” – Christopher Gray
“A superb disc, beautifully presenting a procession os
stellar performances with detailed notes and in sterling sound.” – Classical
Explorer
“The recording quality is of the excellent standard that all
of John’s own label recordings have established” – MusicWeb International
[1] O Holy Night – [Adolphe Adam]
[2] In the stillness – [Sally Beamish]
[3] Noel: verbum caro factum est (Multitude of Voyces Edition, 2020) – [Tamsin Jones]
[4] Sussex Carol – [Traditional arr. Philip Ledger]
[5] There is a flower – [John Rutter]
[6] There is no rose – [Anonymous]
Three Carol-Anthems: – [Herbert Howells]
[7] A Spotless Rose
[8] Sing Lullaby
[9] Here Is The Little Door
[10] In dulci jubilo – [Robert Lucas Pearsall]
[11] Peace on Earth – [Errolyn Wallen]
[12] When Jesus our lord was born in Bethlehem…Say, where is he
born…There shall a star from Jacob come forth [Felix Mendelssohn]
[13] Stille Nacht – [Franz Xaver Gruber arr. Simon Morley]
Quatre motets pour le temps de Noël – [Francis Poulenc]
[14] I. O Magnum mysterium
[15] II. Quem vidistis pastores dicite
[16] III. Videntes stellam
[17] IV. Hodie Christus natus est
[18] In the Bleak Midwinter – [Becky McGlade]
[19] The Three Kings – [Jonathan Dove]
https://signumrecords.com/product/oholynight/SIGCD913/#
Delos is thrilled to announce a new collaboration with
GRAMMY® Award-winning vocal ensemble Chanticleer. Famed for it's "accuracy
of intonation, purity of blend, of color and swagger of style" (Boston
Globe), the group makes it's label debut with Joy to the World. This new
Christmas collection blends tradition with innovation, combining Renaissance
motets and fresh arrangements of classic carols with contemporary compositions,
including two new commissions from Joanna Marsh. Showcasing the ensemble's
extraordinary ability to move seamlessly and expertly between styles,
Chanticleer's first Delos release conjures a wintertime world of magic, light,
and wonder.
https://outhere-music.com/en/albums/joy-world
"This anthology of sacred works – all of which could be used in the liturgies of the Christmas festivities – features some of the leading musicians active in Venice in the 16th and 17th centuries. They range from the earliest, Andrea Gabrieli, who died in 1585, to the most recent, Francesco Cavalli, who died almost a century later, in 1676. At the centre of this broad chronological span we encounter not only veritable giants like Giovanni Gabrieli and Claudio Monteverdi, but also prominent musicians connected to them, such as the Saxon composer Heinrich Schütz, Giovanni Bassano and Alessandro Grandi.
https://www.prestomusic.com/classical/products/9810233--natale-veneziano
Christmas comes in new and unexpected guises – like last
leaf’s fall, in Rowan Williams’s poem Advent Calendar. Following three
acclaimed Delphian recordings of Tudor music, Toby Ward and Ensemble Pro
Victoria bring fresh, contemporary colours to the seasons of Advent and
Christmas; the mood is quiet anticipation, guarded joy, sometimes even fear and
uncertainty, as the Virgin – the spotless Rose at the still centre of it all –
sings her son to sleep amidst death and persecution. Williams narrates the
Nativity story, around which the choir weave Hugo Distler’s searching
polyphonic variations; Piers Connor Kennedy’s Nowel el el for harp and just six
men’s voices is an intimate companion piece – or contrast – to Britten’s famous
carol cycle, and has its first recording here by the group for which it was
written.
https://www.delphianrecords.com/products/nowel-advent-and-beyond
Disc: 1
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1 |
THE NUTCRACKER BALLET OP 71 MINIATURE OVERTURE |
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2 |
We Wish You a Merry Christmas |
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3 |
L'Arlésienne, Suite No. 1: I. Prelude |
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4 |
Entre le b¿uf et l'âne gris (Orch. Pegg) |
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5 |
Silent Night, H. 145a-g |
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6 |
Minuit, Chrétiens |
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7 |
Il est né le divin enfant (Arr. Ekdahl) |
Disc: 2
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1 |
Herz und Mund und Tat und Leben, BWV 147: Chorale.
"Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring" (Instrumental Version) |
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2 |
El noi de la mare (Arr. Llobet for Guitar) |
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3 |
In dulci jubilo (1976 Remastered Version) |
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4 |
Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas (Arr. Allhoff for
Trumpet and Orchestra) |
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5 |
Mon beau sapin (Orch. Stornetta) |
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6 |
Amazing Grace |
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7 |
THE NUTCRACKER BALLET OP71 ACT2 N12 TREPAK RUSSIAN |
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8 |
Douce nuit (Orch. Batchelar) |
Disc: 3
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1 |
Messiah, HWV 56, Pt. 2: Chorus. "Hallelujah" |
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2 |
WEIHNACHTS ORATORIUMCHRISTMAS ORATORIOORATORIO D |
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3 |
I Saw Three Ships (Arr. Rutter for Choir & Organ) |
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4 |
Les anges dans nos campagnes (Orch. Batchelar) |
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5 |
THE NUTCRACKER BALLET OP 71 ACT 1 NO 9 WAL |
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6 |
GLORIA IN EXCELSIS DEOGLORIA RE MAJ RV589 |
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7 |
Sanctus (Based on Pachelbel's Canon) |
Disc: 4
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1 |
THE NUTCRACKER BALLET OP 71 ACT 2 VARIATION I |
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2 |
Jingle Bells (Arr. Ekdahl) |
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3 |
Il est né le divin enfant |
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4 |
Silent Night / Stille Nacht (Arr. Lenaerts) |
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5 |
Agnus Dei, Op. 11 (Barber Adagio) [Excerpt] |
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6 |
Ave Maria, Op. 52 No. 6, D. 839 (Orch. Ducros) |
David Price and the Choir of Portsmouth Cathedral present a selection of traditional and contemporary Christmas carols. They are joined by organists Sachin Gunga, Kim Chin and The Band of His Majesty’s Royal Marines Collingwood.
“The music of Advent and Christmas is rich and deep in the Anglican tradition and here on this album we give you a flavour of a Portsmouth Christmas. We have drawn on all the varied and wonderful events that Portsmouth Cathedral contributes to – from Christmas tours to Antwerp, Carol Services on board HMS Victory for The Second Sea Lord, live broadcasts on BBC TV and Radio as well as our regular round of services here in the Cathedral… We hope you enjoy this snapshot of a Portsmouth Cathedral Christmas” – David Price[1] Fanfare For Once In Royal David’s City, Once in Royal David’s City – [George Arthur Richford, Traditional, arr. David Willcocks]
[1] Fanfare For Once In Royal David’s City, Once in Royal David’s City – [George Arthur Richford, Traditional, arr. David Willcocks]
[2] Veiled in darkness – [Glenn Rudolph]
[3] Advent Prose – [Plainsong]
[4] Bethlehem Down – [Peter Warlock, arr. David Hill]
[5] Let us light a candle – [June Clark]
[6] In dulci jubilo – [Dieterich Buxtehude]
[7] Two Advent Carols: People, look East – [Traditional arr. Barry Ferguson]
[8] The Angel Gabriel – [Traditional arr. Edgar Pettman]
[9] The Truth from Above – [Traditional arr. Ralph Vaughan Williams]
[10] Nova, Nova! – [Bob Chilcott]
[11] There is no rose – [Philip Stopford]
[12] Joys Seven – [Traditional arr. Stephen Cleobury]
[13] Nativitas: Reflection 8: O magnum mysterium – [Philip Moore]
[14] Ding Dong! Merrily on High – [Traditional arr. Mack Wilberg]
[15] The Sans Day Carol – [John Rutter]
[16] The First Nowell – [Bob Chilcott]
[17] All bells in paradise – [John Rutter]
[18] Fanfare For Hark The Herald, Hark the Herald Angels Sing – [George Arthur
Richford, Traditional arr. David Willcocks]
https://signumrecords.com/product/the-first-nowell/SIGCD943/#
I opened my welcome notes to O Holy Night by proclaiming
“The world surely does not need another album of Christmas music”, and so now
feel especially bound to justify why we’re back doing it again.
O Holy Night (of which I remain extremely proud), is a
carefully-chosen selection of many lesser-known carols, with five traditional
‘congregational’ carols (and their ubiquitous descants) interspersed. There is
a clear framework, with the listener being introduced to more unusual – mostly
a capella – choral works, around which the big well-known carols act as
signposts along the way. I’m pleased to say it remains extremely popular to
this day.
On Christmas Night comes from a very different angle. This
album is full of well-known Christmas titles and melodies, but nearly all in
new and interesting arrangements. Ding Dong! Merrily on High, Silent Night, and
Away in a Manger all appear as premiere recordings of new arrangements – and
new imaginings – of these much-loved Christmas melodies.
Our collaboration with the composer Owain Park has been long
and fruitful. As composer-in-residence, LCS has commissioned several
orchestrations and arrangements from Owain over the years, many of which have
become mainstays of our of annual appearance at the Sinfonia Smith Square
Christmas Festival, and are firm favourites of audiences and performers alike.
I’m delighted many of these appear on this album: I hope his skilful
arrangements for chamber orchestra will not only give joy to the listener, but
also more options to other groups at Christmas when full symphonic forces may
not be available.
The Christmas Suite of Alec Rowley is a little gem and is
always well-received by audiences, allowing the strings to take the spotlight
in a conscious nod to the LCS orchestra, which did not feature on O Holy Night.
It wouldn’t be an LCS project without a couple of curveballs
and something completely new. I’m delighted to say that LCS has commissioned
the orchestration for Jim Clements’ symphonic-scaled Awake, Glad Heart!, a
piece I first heard in its original version for choir and organ on my gap year.
A suitably high-energy and rousing conclusion to the tracklist is provided by
Iain Farrington’s toe-tapping Nova, nova.
The final nod goes to my desert island Christmas track, O
Holy Night. As the title track of the first LCS album, it appears there in a
specially-commissioned, technicolour arrangement by Max Pappenheim. It is
fitting, therefore, that Owain Park has orchestrated it for this album, to even
greater technicolour splendour.
I hope there’s something timeless and yet fresh about
everything on this disc, and I also hope it’s a recording people will enjoy
coming back to each festive season. Who knows, maybe we’ll end up with as many
streams as Taylor…
Michael Waldron
ON CHRISTMAS NIGHT
Percy Fletcher (1879-1932)
1. Ring Out, Wild Bells*
Orchestrated by Owain Park
Jim Clements (b.1983)
2. Awake, Glad Heart!*
Emma Bell, soprano
Traditional arr. Bob Chilcott (b.1955)
3. Silent Night*
Howard Blake (b.1938)
4. Walking in the Air
Malakai Bayoh, treble
Harold Darke (1888-1976)
5. In the Bleak Midwinter
Alec Rowley (1892-1958)
Christmas Suite
6. I Prelude
7. II Siciliana
8. III Minuet
9. IV Sarabande
10 V Bourrée
11. VI Fughetta
12. VII Finale
Gustav Holst (1874-1934)
13. Christmas Day*
Martha McLorinan, mezzo-soprano
Jimmy Holliday, bass
Orchestrated by Owain Park
Traditional arr. Bob Chilcott (b.1955)
14. Away in a Manger*
Traditional arr. Max Pappenheim (b.1983)
15. O Holy Night*
Emma Bell, soprano
Orchestrated by Owain Park
Traditional arr. Mack Wilberg (b.1955)
16. Ding Dong! Merrily on High*
Orchestrated by Owain Park
Iain Farrington (b.1977)
17. Nova, nova*
London Choral Sinfonia
Michael Waldron
Emma Bell, soprano
Malakai Bayoh, treble
Martha McLorinan, mezzo-soprano
Jimmy Holliday, bass
*World Premiere Recording
Born in Manchester (1963) in the northwest of England, Sasha
Johnson Manning studied at London’s Royal Academy of Music. Upon graduation,
she established a career as a professional singer and choir director and also
taught. Though she had written much for local choirs, her compositional skills
were significantly encouraged through a formal association with the Saint Louis
Chamber Chorus where she became its ‘Composer-in-Residence,’ creating an
8-movement ‘Requiem’ (Regent REGCD255).
In parallel with her growing reputation in the Midwest,
Sasha has been applauded in the UK for her appealing and affecting music, with
‘The Manchester Carols’ (a collaboration with the poet, Carol Ann Duffy)
enjoying much popularity. Another notable commission came from the BBC,
resulting in ‘The People’s Passion’, a work performed both in the UK, and far
beyond, in Europe, Africa and the USA.
For those who know Sasha primarily as a choral composer,
this instrumental anthology will come as a surprise, but it provides important
testimony to her versatility as an artist.
Each month Third Baptist Church in Saint Louis, Missouri,
features in their Sunday services solo keyboard works on a theme recognising
the religious season and time of year. ‘A Year at Third’ was commissioned to
fulfill that role. Modelled on ‘The Seasons’ by Tchaikovsky, the twelve short
pieces are beautiful studies, capturing the different character of the twelve
months of the year in quintessentially English styles.
The recording concludes with two Christmas works for piano
and String Quintet – the second an extended work in three movements – featuring
rhapsodic treatments of well-known Advent, Christmas, and Epiphany carols.
All the music on the disc is recorded here for the first
time.
with Chantal Incandela (track 13) and Anita Hagerman (tracks
14–16) double bass
conducted by Philip Barnes (tracks 13–16)
A Year at Third: 12 studies for Solo Piano
1 January: Melody of the cold earth, richness of kings’
gifts, new growth and promise of wholeness
2 February: The redemptive power of love
3 March: ‘Lead me to the rock that is higher than I’
4 April – Palm Sunday: An excitable crowd, perhaps not fully
comprehending the true significance of what it is they are witnessing
5 May: The green hill
6 June: The Eternal Father
7 July : Be confident! Trust Jesus! God is our hope and
strength!
8 August: Like as the hart
9 September: Finding God in the darkest depths
10 October: Affirmation
11 November: Awake, my soul
12 December: O come, O come, Emmanuel
13 On Christmas Day (for Piano and String Quintet)
A Christmas Rhapsody (for Piano and String Quintet)
14 I O come, O come, Emmanuel
15 II Whence is that goodly fragrance flowing?
16 III How brightly shines the morning star
https://www.regent-records.co.uk/product/sasha-johnson-manning-a-year-at-third/
A super Christmas CD with carols from all eras, performed by
the choir of Llandaff Cathedral.
New EP This Christmas. Lyyra collaborates with the amazing @visionstringquartet to give you some new Christmas faves to listen to all season!!!!
New York-based early music ensemble Concordian Dawn presents
Veni Redemptor Gentium, a joyful and introspective celebration of the Christmas
season centred around songs from the 13th – 15th centuries, plus two
world-premiere recordings of works by Australian-born composer David Yardley.
1. This Holy Tym Oure Lord Was Born
Kennedy, Hedberg (voice and percussion), Karageorgiou, Thompson (voice and
percussion), McCargar (voice and percussion), Mor (recorder and percussion),
Seligmann (vielle)
2. Isaiah and Sybil’s Prophecies
McCargar (voice), Thompson (harp), Mor (ney), Seligmann (vielle), Evans,
Karageorgiou
3. Gabriel fram Heven King
Karageorgiou, Thompson (voice), McCargar (voice)
4. Veni, redemptor gentium
Kennedy, Hedberg (voice), Thompson (voice), McCargar (voice)
5. Kuando el rey Nimrod
Mor (voice and percussion), Seligmann (vielle), Hedberg (voice and percussion),
Thompson (voice and percussion), McCargar (percussion)
6. Alma
redemptoris mater
McCargar (voice)
7. Ave, regina caelorum/Alma redemptoris mater
Evans, Hedberg (voice), Mor (recorder), Thompson (harp)
8. Orientis partibus
Mor (recorder), Seligmann (vielle), Thompson (harp), McCargar (percussion)
9. Alle psallite cum luya
Karageorgiou, Thompson (voice), McCargar (voice), Seligmann (percussion), Mor
(percussion)
10. Psallite regi glorie: Thompson (voice and harp)
11. Hail Mary, full of grace
Karageorgiou, Thompson (voice), McCargar (voice)
12. Personent Hodie
Seligmann (vielle), Thompson (harp), Mor (percussion)
13. Beata viscera
Kennedy (voice), Seligmann (vielle)
14. Vox Clamantis in Deserto
Evans, Hedberg (voice), Thompson (voice), McCargar (voice), Seligmann (vielle)
15. Dum medium silentium
McCargar (voice), Karageorgiou, Thompson (voice)
16. Magnificat
Evans, Thompson (voice), McCargar (voice)
17. Now make we mirthe all and sum
Evans, Karageorgiou
18. Quem pastores laudavere
Mor (recorder), Seligmann (vielle), Thompson (harp), McCargar (percussion)
19. Verbum caro factum est
Evans, Hedberg (voice), Thompson (voice)
20. Ther is no rose of swych vertu
Kennedy, Hedberg (voice), Karageorgiou (voice), Mor (recorder), Seligmann
(vielle), Thompson (harp)
21. In Adventu Domini
Karageorgiou, Thompson (voice), McCargar (voice)
22. Be mery, be mery
Evans, Hedberg (voice), Karageorgiou, Mor (recorder), Seligmann (vielle),
Thompson (harp)
https://www.avie-records.com/releases/veni-redemptor-gentium/
Anyone who has ever strolled through a Christmas market during Advent knows: amidst the scent of mulled wine, the sounds of pan flutes, and children's choirs, familiar melodies mingle with the hectic bustle.
For those who, after all the hustle and bustle, wish to channel the many impressions into a harmonious flow, the CD "vollxlied xmas" offers the perfect solution: a collection for Advent and Christmas that beautifully combines tradition and new discoveries.
With each of the 24 tracks, Ensemble Nobiles opens a new sonic world. The foundation of this Advent calendar is a dramaturgy of diversity, emphasizing the opportunity for sonic rediscoveries, even of well-known melodies.
The four Sundays of Advent stand out from the other pieces. Guest choirs accompany the singers, lending these tracks a special brilliance.
Ensemble Nobiles' ninth album follows their 2020 release, vollxlied – Made in Germany, which invited listeners on a musical journey through German-speaking countries, spanning styles, regions, and eras – this time with a Christmas theme.
Christmas carols from every corner of the German-speaking world – freshly arranged and with a cheeky charm.
https://www.ensemblenobiles.de/shop
The Wise Men and the Star. Album by The Sixteen
Christmas simply wouldn’t be Christmas without the iconic
voices of The Sixteen providing a soundtrack to the season. Celebrated for
collections that provide an alternative to the customary festive offerings,
this new album from the world-renown choir is no exception.
No other festival in the Christian year has inspired so many composers and such a variety of musical styles as Christmas. The Wise Men and the Star features a veritable cornucopia of yuletide music from the premieres of three new works to traditional carols including Away in a manger and In the bleak midwinter, and modern classics such as Eric Whitacre’s Lux aurumque and Mykola Leontovich’s Carol of the bells. This new album promises something for everyone.
https://cororecords.com/products/the-wise-men-and-the-star
In this first recording from Birmingham under musical
director, David Hardie, we are taken on a musical journey through the church’s
year from Advent to Christ the King.
Alongside the great festivals, Birmingham Cathedral,
situated at the heart of Britain’s ‘Second City’, as well as celebrating the
cultural and demographic diversity of this great city, has a special mission to
support the vulnerable and marginalised in society. The recording features
musical items performed during the year to recognise all aspects of its
mission.
Advent
1 Rorate caeli – Humphrey Clucas
Christmas
2 The holly and the ivy – June Nixon*
3 In silent night – Mitchell B Southall
Epiphany
4 There shall a star from Jacob come forth
– Felix Mendelssohn*
Candlemas
5 Nunc dimittis – Gustav
Holst
Racial Justice Sunday
6 Resignation – Florence Price
Annunciation
7 Ave Maria – Ben Ponniah
Lent and Passiontide
8 Ex ore innocentium – John Ireland* 3:32
Easter
9 Ye choirs of new Jerusalem – Charles Villiers
Stanford*
Ascension
10 Offertoire pour la fête de l’Ascension
– Théodore Dubois Organ solo: David Hardie
Pentecost
11 Come down, O Love divine – William Henry Harris*
Trinity
12 Great Lord of Lords – Charles Wood
Corpus Christi
13 Panis angelicus – César Franck*
14 Corpus Christi Carol – Judith Bingham*
Harvest
15 Let the people praise thee, O God – William
Mathias*
Dedication Festival
16 Locus iste – Anton Bruckner
All Saints
17 Give us the wings of faith – Ernest Bullock*
All Souls
18 In paradisum – Philip Moore
Safeguarding Sunday
19 A Child’s Prayer – James MacMillan
Christ the King
20 Let all mortal flesh keep silence – Edward
Cuthbert Bairstow
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