Holiday Cheer, Part 2

And now, the conclusion of Everett’s Top 10

5. I’ll be home for Christmas

In a time when so many servicemen and women are not able to celebrate Christmas with their loved ones, I feel it’s necessary to include this one on my list. It really speaks volumes about how cherished family time is, especially at this time of year.

4. Silent Night / First Noel

I know, I know. I cheated last time, and I’m cheating this time, including two songs under one line item. These are both such classics in terms of words and melody that I can’t bear to exclude one or the other. Of course, the first half of my list included mostly modern songs. With this pair of songs I am headed back a century. Both of these date back to the mid nineteenth century. While Stille Nacht has a composer that we know (Gruber), the First Noel has a more indeterminate history. We don’t really know who wrote the music, although we can trace it back to some songbooks from Great Britain in the 19th century.

3. Messiah

For those of you well acquainted with Handel’s Messiah, you will not question its inclusion here. If you don’t know it well or have never sung it, it is well worth it. It’s been reported that a number of poets have learned Italian simply to be able to read Dante’s Divine Comedy. I would say that a musical analogy, at least to sacred vocal music, would be that it would be worth learning to read music if only to be able to sing Handel’s Messiah. There are so many scriptures that I have memorized simply because I have sung the Messiah so many times. And while I’ve sung the Hallelujah chorus too many times for it to hold much of a special musical draw for me, there are so many other great arias and choruses… Thou wilt not leave his soul in hell, I know that my Redeemer liveth, Surely He hath borne our griefs and carried our sorrows… And many, many more!

2. O Holy Night

Originally set to a French poem (Placide Cappeau) by the composer of French operas, Adolphe Adam, this is one of the most vocally rewarding of Christmas carols to sing. Maybe the fact that an opera composer wrote it has something to do with that. I mean, really, when it comes down to it, it’s an opera aria. So for those of you who say you don’t like opera, if you like this song, then you might want to give opera a chance. A special note regarding the lyrics: our well known English version differs significantly from the French in numerous respects. But just to iterate one of the key differences, instead of “O Night, Divine, O Holy Night” at the end, the French translates to “Christmas, Christmas, here is the Redeemer,” a much more fitting emphasis, to my understanding.

1. And finally, my favorite Christmas carol is . . . drum roll please . . . Adventi ének. I mentioned this in a Notes post back in 2007. And while I’m sure you don’t recognize it from this title. My favorite arrangement of this song is by the Hungarian composer Zoltán Kodály. And you can view it here, courtesy of YouTube. The tune dates back hundreds of years and has a storied past. Please click on one of the links and give it a listen, if you are interested in finding out my favorite Christmas carol of all time.

Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good night!

Christmas Music Ramblings

So it’s Christmas time! Everybody’s at the mall. Those of us that have snow to play in are playing in it (or dreading shoveling it). This is the time of year when everybody’s happy all the time (except while driving). But what marks this season more than anything else for me is when the Christmas music begins to be played everywhere; in the mall, on the radio, in CD players all over the world and in churches all over the world. There is no doubt what season this is.

So I would like to simply mention a couple CDs and songs that I like and maybe you guys could mention some to me.

The first song I’d like to mention is “Happy Xmas” by John Lennon. Yes, I used the term Xmas and yes, I said John Lennon. I’m not saying I’m a John Lennon fan, but there’s just something about this particular song that causes me to put that baby on repeat. Maybe it’s the children from the Harlem Community Choir that give the song its appeal. Perhaps it’s the lyrics that promote peace on earth. After all, who wants to think about war, fighting and killing while we celebrate the birth of Christ? As for the Xmas part; “X” is simply an abbreviation for the word Christ in Greek, people have been using it for over 1,000 years and Christ is still in Christmas people. Besides, with this economy Christ may be the only thing some of us will be receiving this holiday season, and I say that sincerely.

Of course, everybody likes the Trans Siberian Orchestra’s “Christmas Eve/Sarajevo 12/24.” That’s a great twist on a seasonal song. It’s not exactly what one has in mind when you think of “God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen” and “Carol of the Bells.” I love this song and I’m not one that gets into a lot of heavy guitar stuff.

An album that I think is great is Emmanuel by Norman Hutchins that features several other artists. We are actually using 2 of the songs for our Christmas service this year. They put a twist on quite a few traditional Christmas songs that could help you have a “churchy” Christmas if you like.

And finally, an album that is not so new, but I enjoy listening to even now is Israel Houghton’s A Timeless Christmas. This upbeat Christmas CD keeps me bobbing my head in the car, in the music room at the church, and even right now while I’m typing this. And if that doesn’t sound like a testimonial on a commercial, I don’t know what does. They should be paying me for this free advertisement. Ha ha ha ha.

Merry Christmas and God Bless!
P.S. Don’t forget to show your families how much you love and appreciate them.

Holiday Cheer, Part 1

I think I’ve mentioned I’m not much one for Christmas carols. But then again, who doesn’t love a bit of Schadenfreude. Few things make me happier than playing Christmas carols on my iPod before Thanksgiving in the presence of someone who likes Christmas carols less than I do.

So, from a guy who doesn’t care all that much for Christmas carols, here is the first half of my “Top 10 Favorite Christmas Music.” I hope to publish an ad hoc post before 12/25 for the other half of the list.

10. Let It Snow / Winter Wonderland / White Christmas

Okay. I guess this is cheating just a little bit. I named three carols here instead of picking just one because they all revolve around the same kind of thing: snow and cold. Snow, mostly, I guess. White Christmas is justly famous. Its inherent lyric romanticism can’t be beat. The resounding and buoyant joy of the other two always gets my toes a’ tappin’. And I love to bring a little Schadenfreude by singing them randomly to people who like snow less than I do. Especially when it’s snowing.

9. Nutcracker

For this first half of my list, the only thing composed before 1900 is this piece by Peter Tchaikovsky. It’s really a brilliant composition. What’s not to love about the music of the Nutcracker ballet? I like the ballet, too, of course, but it’s the music that I encounter year after year and I do not seem to easily tire of.

8. Linus & Lucy

Please don’t be irritated with me for having such irreligious compositions in my list. I just love this tune. There’s nothing Christmas about it. It was popularized in A Charlie Brown Christmas, but then again, it’s more of a Charlie Brown song than anything.

7. Christmas Song

“Chestnuts roasting o’er an open fire.” It doesn’t get much more Christmas-y than that! Well. Maybe except for the following tune. Then again, I am not talking about traditional carols here. All of the tunes in this first half of my top 10 don’t really have much to do with Christmas, per se. Christmas isn’t about the music, or the presents, or the decorations. It isn’t about the food, getting the house ready for guests or even the precious moments of family time that we are privileged to share.

6. Sleigh Ride

I have to confess, I did not grow up with this song. It’s one that came into my life around the same time as my wife. She is a big fan of this style of old-time Christmas song done in an era gone by (think: Johnny Mathis). It did not take long to sway me. I am convinced, the Johnny Mathis version of this song is simply the best.

For those of you who may be wondering, in the second half of my list, in addition to the much older median age of the musical composition, there is a much greater spiritual emphasis in the lyrics.