One of my friends on Facebook asked what our favorite
Christmas songs or carols are. And I couldn’t just give a title. There are
reasons these songs make my tops list,
Little Drummer Boy.
In 7th grade, I switched from playing flute to oboe which was
probably the best musical decision I ever made. I know I’m not the only one to believe
that personalities and instruments have to match. If you like being in a group,
you should play something like flute, clarinet, violin or viola. If you don’t
mind standing out, or even positively want
to stand out, then consider the double reeds – oboe, English horn, bassoon. So
the oboe was a good fit for me.
Every year, the junior high advanced band would play Little
Drummer Boy at the Christmas concert (this was when Moby Dick was a minnow so
the concerts were still called that), and that arrangement had an oboe duet
right at the beginning. Now I’d only been playing oboe for about six or seven
weeks so I was still really learning what it meant to be a double reed player,
and I wasn’t in the advanced band, I was in the beginner band. But the advanced
band had just one oboist so I was tapped to play second oboe in that piece. I’m
sure we sounded like dying ducks but I was so exhilarated by playing that piece
and so convinced of my pure awesomeness on the oboe that I never looked back.
Breath of Heaven.
I heard this piece about 20 years ago on Amy Grant’s second Christmas album and
along with most CCM listeners, was captivated by the words and the melody. Amy has
said before that she’s not the best singer and knows there are other artists
out there who are far more talented than she, but to me her voice fits this
piece perfectly. I love that she’s singing from the perspective of a young,
scared, very pregnant Mary wondering why she was picked to be the mother of
Christ and whether or not she can actually do it.
‘twas da Night:
Take 6 did an amazing version of this old favorite which made me laugh out loud
the first time I heard it and hasn’t stopped being entertaining since. Plus
they’re just amazing vocalists.
Carol of the Bells.
I flat out love this song whether it’s done as an instrumental or vocal
version.
Chant Noel. OK,
this isn’t one song, it’s an entire Christmas CD put out by the Benedictine
Monks about 20 years ago as a follow up to their first CD. I don’t know Latin
at all but I still love this CD and it’s on my Christmas playlist.
And here's something I posted on Facebook yesterday, which is well worth the four minutes it takes to watch:
What about you? What are your favorite Christmas songs?
5 comments:
Love "Breath of Heaven" - "Home For Christmas" is my favorite Christmas album.
Did you ever get your chance to play the oboe part in Peter and the Wolf, speaking of dying ducks?
I do like that Carol of the Bells.
My favorite, as I said on FB, is my kids singing the "date rape song" (Baby, It's Cold Outside). I also like the shower scene where they sing it in Elf.
You know that I can only think of that song as the Date Rape Song now, right? Pretty sure I told you that when you came through Boston.
Yes, I've played the duck part in Peter & the Wolf. In fact when it's clear people don't know what an oboe is, I always ask if they've heard of Peter and the Wolf. Usually they have and then I just say the oboe is the duck.
Another huge favorite oboe duet for me is the Ballet of the Unhatched Chicks from Mussorgky's Pictures at an Exhibition. That one is so fun to play.
I like pretty much all Christmas music. A few of my favorites among the traditional are "Coventry Carol," "O Holy Night," and "Il Est Ne Le Divin Enfant." But it would be easier to list the ones I don't like.
Oddities:
The Mason Williams Christmas album (called A Gift of Song" is a favorite. It contains instrumentals of traditional and original holiday pieces in the inimitable Mason Williams style.
The Hey Nunnie Nunnie: Every Day is Christmas! album, by two women who perform a fabulous Renaissance Festival act. In addition to being extremely funny, they are wonderful singers. This album includes classics like "Carol of the Laughs" and "What Would Satan Want for Christmas?"
Ron
That Leroy Anderson is indeed fun.
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