Jurassic Shark 12,030 Posted December 3, 2019 Share Posted December 3, 2019 It doesn't have to be songs / carols / hymns originally written for Christmas, as long as they're associated with it now. Mine, in random order: O Holy Night Es ist ein Ros Entsprungen Ave Maria (Schubert) Joy to the World Fairest Lord Jesus Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Disco Stu 15,495 Posted December 3, 2019 Share Posted December 3, 2019 I'm not quite sure what you mean by "traditional." I'd interpret that as meaning hymns, but your list includes "The Christmas Song." Here's my list of my five favorite Christmas hymns in alpha order that I thought about for all of 30 seconds. The First Noel Hark! The Herald Angels Sing O Come All Ye Faithful (Adeste Fideles) O Holy Night Sussex Carol (On Christmas Night) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jurassic Shark 12,030 Posted December 3, 2019 Author Share Posted December 3, 2019 6 minutes ago, Disco Stu said: I'm not quite sure what you mean by "traditional." The composer should be long dead or not even known! 6 minutes ago, Disco Stu said: I'd interpret that as meaning hymns, but your list includes "The Christmas Song." Fixed! 6 minutes ago, Disco Stu said: O Come All Ye Faithful (Adeste Fideles) Oh yeah, that's a great one. I might exchange Joy to the World with this. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fabulin 3,510 Posted December 3, 2019 Share Posted December 3, 2019 . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Disco Stu 15,495 Posted December 3, 2019 Share Posted December 3, 2019 @First TROS March Accolyte I listened to Lutoslawski's arrangement of Polish carols just this past weekend. publicist 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fabulin 3,510 Posted December 3, 2019 Share Posted December 3, 2019 . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom 4,639 Posted December 3, 2019 Share Posted December 3, 2019 O Holy Night Angels We have heard on High Handel's Hallelujah chorus Joy to the World O Come all ye Faithful And, yes, Star of Bethlehem Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Edmilson 7,392 Posted December 3, 2019 Share Posted December 3, 2019 When I was a kid I used to like a VHS of Christmas music with Disney characters or something, but these days I can't stand Christmas songs. This is the kind of crap I have to hear every year here: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Disco Stu 15,495 Posted December 3, 2019 Share Posted December 3, 2019 26 minutes ago, First TROS March Accolyte said: Sounds like a Benny Herrmann christmas album About that.... If you can handle listening to a low quality TV audio recording from the '50s, Herrmann's musical setting of A Christmas Carol is seriously wonderful and under-known. Fabulin 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fabulin 3,510 Posted December 3, 2019 Share Posted December 3, 2019 . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pellaeon 593 Posted December 3, 2019 Share Posted December 3, 2019 Silent night Joy to the world It came upon a midnight clear God rest ye merry, gentlemen The holly and the ivy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mstrox 6,647 Posted December 3, 2019 Share Posted December 3, 2019 O Holy Night Christmas (Baby Please Come Home) All I Want for Christmas Is You Must Be Santa (Bob Dylan version) Come On! Let's Boogey to the Elf Dance Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jurassic Shark 12,030 Posted December 3, 2019 Author Share Posted December 3, 2019 5 hours ago, Jurassic Shark said: The composer should be long dead or not even known! 12 minutes ago, mstrox said: Christmas (Baby Please Come Home) All I Want for Christmas Is You Must Be Santa (Bob Dylan version) Come On! Let's Boogey to the Elf Dance Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thor 7,466 Posted December 3, 2019 Share Posted December 3, 2019 "Deilig er jorden" might be my alltime favourite (original German title "Schönster Herr Jesu, Herrscher alle Herren"). Also: "O Holy Night". "Star of Bethlehem" (OK, he's not dead, but I had to include it) "Det lyser i stille grender" (Norwegian) "En rose er utsprungen" (original German title: "Es ist ein Ros entsprungen") "White Christmas" (original Bing Crosby version, not the HOME ALONE one) ....and many more. Damn, that was SIX, wasn't it? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mstrox 6,647 Posted December 3, 2019 Share Posted December 3, 2019 5 hours ago, Jurassic Shark said: The composer should be long dead or not even known! Off the top of my head, I don't even know who composed those songs! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jurassic Shark 12,030 Posted December 3, 2019 Author Share Posted December 3, 2019 3 minutes ago, mstrox said: Off the top of my head, I don't even know who composed those songs! That's OK, as long as they're all dead. 14 minutes ago, Thor said: "Deilig er jorden" might be my alltime favourite (original German title "Schönster Herr Jesu, Herrscher alle Herren"). Or Fairest Lord Jesus in English. But it has to be with the seemingly optional short change of key towards the end! I'm surprised nobody's mentioned Carol of the Bells! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pellaeon 593 Posted December 3, 2019 Share Posted December 3, 2019 O holy night — I want to love it, but I just really can’t abide it. I don’t think I have ever heard it performed unpretentiously. It always has some combination of solos, scooping, oohing and aahing, and arpeggios, and the faces on the performers are always very self-conscious, like they’re in pain or just really think they’re adorable. If anyone knows a recording of a nice, unsentimental SATB arrangement a capella or with organ, please help me out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jurassic Shark 12,030 Posted December 3, 2019 Author Share Posted December 3, 2019 There's only one worthy recording - Jussi Björling's. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marian Schedenig 8,173 Posted December 3, 2019 Share Posted December 3, 2019 7 hours ago, Disco Stu said: The First Noel Hark! The Herald Angels Sing O Come All Ye Faithful (Adeste Fideles) I'll take these and add Coventry Carol. I'm also really fond of this one: Arranged by a friend of our choir director and supposedly based on a traditional Christmas song from Tyrol (which I'm unfamiliar with). Fabulin 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jurassic Shark 12,030 Posted December 3, 2019 Author Share Posted December 3, 2019 3 minutes ago, Marian Schedenig said: Arranged by a friend of our choir director Nepotism! Fabulin 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Disco Stu 15,495 Posted December 3, 2019 Share Posted December 3, 2019 Adeste Fideles is indeed great, and such a mishmash of a melody in terms of coming from many different sources. I think the "o come ye, o come ye to bethlehem" part of the melody must have been taken from Bach 15:00 - 15:10 SteveMc and Jurassic Shark 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thor 7,466 Posted December 3, 2019 Share Posted December 3, 2019 1 hour ago, Jurassic Shark said: There's only one worthy recording - Jussi Björling's. That is correct! (although it's in Swedish, in case that matters). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Naïve Old Fart 9,498 Posted December 3, 2019 Share Posted December 3, 2019 SILENT NIGHT, SETTING THE TRAP, IN SEARCH OF ANGELS (Tim Story), IN THE BLEAK MIDWINTER, DOGS IN THE MIDWINTER (Jethro Tull), OH COME ALL YE FAITHFUL, SNOWBOUND (Genesis), SADNESS PT. 1 (Enigma), OH FATHER (Madonna). I know that some of these aren't strictly Christmas songs, but they will always remind me of Christmas, no matter what time of year I hear them. To me, that's more important than being "traditional". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thor 7,466 Posted December 3, 2019 Share Posted December 3, 2019 1 hour ago, Naïve Old Fart said: I know that some of these aren't strictly Christmas songs, but they will always remind me of Christmas, no matter what time of year I hear them. To me, that's more important than being "traditional". Also, most of the composers are still alive. Jurassic Shark 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jurassic Shark 12,030 Posted December 4, 2019 Author Share Posted December 4, 2019 How dare they! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jurassic Shark 12,030 Posted December 4, 2019 Author Share Posted December 4, 2019 10 hours ago, Naïve Old Fart said: I know that some of these aren't strictly Christmas songs You rebel! Naïve Old Fart 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fabulin 3,510 Posted December 4, 2019 Share Posted December 4, 2019 . Jurassic Shark 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jurassic Shark 12,030 Posted December 4, 2019 Author Share Posted December 4, 2019 Sounds like a scene from The Irishman! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Naïve Old Fart 9,498 Posted December 4, 2019 Share Posted December 4, 2019 ...or the end scene in SEXY BEAST, where the Devil catches up with a dead Ben Kingsley, only to be given a "fuck you" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post Disco Stu 15,495 Posted December 4, 2019 Popular Post Share Posted December 4, 2019 Here's a really fun arrangement, it's a medley of Christmas tunes re-arranged in a minor key. Recommended for Elfman fans (but not just Elfman fans)! It manages to go through all the below in 6 minutes, some are given extended treatment, some are just passing references. Deck the Halls Up on the Housetop (in Klezmer style!) Santa Claus is Comin' to Town (sounds like German cabaret music to me) Jolly Old Saint Nicholas Here Comes Santa Claus (oom pah!) We Wish You a Merry Christmas Silver Bells Jingle Bells (with a dash of Chim Chim Cher-ee!) Rudolph Sleigh Ride Do You What I Hear? Here We Come a-Wassailing Russian Dance from The Nutcracker Fabulin, The Illustrious Jerry and Jurassic Shark 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Disco Stu 15,495 Posted December 5, 2019 Share Posted December 5, 2019 The arranger did a sequel! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jurassic Shark 12,030 Posted December 5, 2019 Author Share Posted December 5, 2019 On 12/3/2019 at 8:45 PM, Pellaeon said: O holy night — I want to love it, but I just really can’t abide it. I don’t think I have ever heard it performed unpretentiously. It always has some combination of solos, scooping, oohing and aahing, and arpeggios, and the faces on the performers are always very self-conscious, like they’re in pain or just really think they’re adorable. If anyone knows a recording of a nice, unsentimental SATB arrangement a capella or with organ, please help me out. On 12/3/2019 at 9:20 PM, Jurassic Shark said: There's only one worthy recording - Jussi Björling's. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Disco Stu 15,495 Posted December 5, 2019 Share Posted December 5, 2019 I won't abide anything bad said about Williams' recording for Home Alone. It's simple and unadorned and beautiful. Gotta say, I didn't enjoy that Bjorling recording. Blubbering overblown opera tenors are the worst. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jurassic Shark 12,030 Posted December 5, 2019 Author Share Posted December 5, 2019 9 minutes ago, Disco Stu said: I won't abide anything bad said about Williams' recording for Home Alone. It's simple and unadorned and beautiful. I don't think anybody has said anything bad about HA here. 9 minutes ago, Disco Stu said: Gotta say, I didn't enjoy that Bjorling recording. Blubbering overblown opera tenors are the worst. Funny, coming from an American, masters of the overblown. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Disco Stu 15,495 Posted December 5, 2019 Share Posted December 5, 2019 25 minutes ago, Jurassic Shark said: I don't think anybody has said anything bad about HA here. It was implied! 26 minutes ago, Jurassic Shark said: Funny, coming from an American, masters of the overblown. You enjoy Wagner, do not dare talk to me about overblown nonsense. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jurassic Shark 12,030 Posted December 5, 2019 Author Share Posted December 5, 2019 7 minutes ago, Disco Stu said: It was implied! Where? 7 minutes ago, Disco Stu said: You enjoy Wagner, do not dare talk to me about overblown nonsense. There's a difference between feeling and overblown. Wagner was certainly the latter, both as a person and in his music, but not Björling in O Helga Natt. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Disco Stu 15,495 Posted December 5, 2019 Share Posted December 5, 2019 It's just not a style of singing I enjoy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thor 7,466 Posted December 5, 2019 Share Posted December 5, 2019 It's the only proper way to sing that song. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Disco Stu 15,495 Posted December 5, 2019 Share Posted December 5, 2019 The "proper" way is a church congregation singing it together. It's a hymn, not an aria. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thor 7,466 Posted December 5, 2019 Share Posted December 5, 2019 1 minute ago, Disco Stu said: The "proper" way is a church congregation singing it together. It's a hymn, not an aria. It's true that a choral version (a harmonized choral version, not a church congregation) is the second best way to hear that song, but the best is to have a singer of Björling's caliber provide showmanship in the difficult parts, while at the same keeping it lean and focussed. Björling's version is the benchmark that everything else is measured after. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Disco Stu 15,495 Posted December 5, 2019 Share Posted December 5, 2019 Somebody please save me from the nordmenn. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jurassic Shark 12,030 Posted December 5, 2019 Author Share Posted December 5, 2019 Jussi Björling is your savior. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SteveMc 2,674 Posted December 5, 2019 Share Posted December 5, 2019 O Holy Night Silent Night Hark! The Herald Angels Sing The First Noel The Holly and The Ivy On 12/3/2019 at 1:45 PM, Pellaeon said: O holy night — I want to love it, but I just really can’t abide it. I don’t think I have ever heard it performed unpretentiously. It always has some combination of solos, scooping, oohing and aahing, and arpeggios, and the faces on the performers are always very self-conscious, like they’re in pain or just really think they’re adorable. If anyone knows a recording of a nice, unsentimental SATB arrangement a capella or with organ, please help me out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jurassic Shark 12,030 Posted December 5, 2019 Author Share Posted December 5, 2019 3 hours ago, Thor said: the best is to have a singer of Björling's caliber provide showmanship in the difficult parts, while at the same keeping it lean and focussed. Björling's version is the benchmark that everything else is measured after. Eloquently said! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Disco Stu 15,495 Posted December 7, 2019 Share Posted December 7, 2019 On 12/3/2019 at 4:11 PM, Marian Schedenig said: I'll take these and add Coventry Carol. In case you're not familiar, Leroy Anderson, that King of Christmas Arrangements, has a lovely arrangement of the Coventry Carol for just the woodwind section of the orchestra. (and an alternate recording if the above, which is the one I own, is region-locked) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
publicist 4,643 Posted December 7, 2019 Share Posted December 7, 2019 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Disco Stu 15,495 Posted December 7, 2019 Share Posted December 7, 2019 A Ceremony of Carols is one of Britten's greatest works for sure. For the Christmas season, I also enjoy his A Boy Was Born, a pretty early composition that shows his distinct, quirky approach to composing for voices was in place even at 19 years old. Marian Schedenig 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marian Schedenig 8,173 Posted December 7, 2019 Share Posted December 7, 2019 6 hours ago, Disco Stu said: A Ceremony of Carols is one of Britten's greatest works for sure. For the Christmas season, I also enjoy his A Boy Was Born, a pretty early composition that shows his distinct, quirky approach to composing for voices was in place even at 19 years old. I was going to mention that in response to Pub's post. We did it for our Christmas concert last year (though we sadly had to leave out the first half of the finale - that would have taken us another few weeks of rehearsals). Hardest piece we ever did, but impressive. Variation 5 (In the Bleak Midwinter) is perhaps my favourite part (and the men in the choir don't even sing it). It's amazing how perfectly it captures the icy chill of winter and the image of falling snow. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Oomoog the Ecstatic 314 Posted December 8, 2019 Share Posted December 8, 2019 My Top 5 is We Three Kings I guess, published 1857. We three kings of orient are,Bearing gifts we traverse afarField and fountain, moor and mountain,Following yonder star. Oh, star of wonder, star of night,Star with royal beauty bright.Westward leading, still proceeding,Guide us with thy perfect light. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thor 7,466 Posted December 8, 2019 Share Posted December 8, 2019 This is also a favourite of mine, which I see no one has mentioned yet. But hey -- I'm at SEVEN now, so I'm way beyond the limits. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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