The Newberry Consort and EnsAmble Ad-Hoc present A MEXICAN CHRISTMAS, an album of 17th century traditional music for worship and celebration. The collection features pieces commonly heard in both liturgical service and in the streets, and evoke the solemnity and fanfare heard in Mexico City’s convents and plazas, with jubilant vocals and lively strings, guitars, and percussion. Organ, harp, bassoon, and a variety of Mexican traditional instruments bring this exuberant and diverse music to life.

This is a Christmas album that has a sense of place; clearly identifying the Chorale as both American and from a border state with Mexico; and something for everyone whether they prefer serious or light festive fare. There is Mexican influence in the repertoire choices; which include Catalan folksongs as well as Hispanic Renaissance music. It includes a commission by Cecilia McDowall; written for Christmas 2021; new arrangements of all tracks and also some contemporary Christmas favourites such as Sleigh Ride and Jingle Bells.

This marks the Chorale’s return to recording following an 8-year hiatus; and their first album with Signum Records. “Festive repertoire plays an important role in the performance cycle of every choir; and it felt fitting to begin our journey with a Christmas recording that established a sense of place for the ensemble: we chose to record repertoire that is all American or Hispanic in origin; save for the newly-commissioned piece by Cecilia McDowall that was written to mark the centenary of our home in Phoenix; Trinity Cathedral. Our aim is to translate the warmth of Arizona into our sound; to convey the rhetoric of every text; and celebrate the good health of the American Choral Tradition.” - Christopher Gabbitas

Christmas carols have a universal appeal stemming from the tradition of music being played; sung; re- arranged and rewritten by different generations in many different countries and over a number of centuries. Louis Halsey’s Nova! Nova!; a collection of new arrangements of many of the most well-known and beautiful carols from as far back as medieval times; represents perhaps the largest collection of carols by a single composer for many years. Hertfordshire Chorus and David Temple have recorded 24 of these carols in this beautifully presented new collection; including English; German; French; Czech; Basque; Welsh and Irish melodies. “What I love about Louis Halsey’s arrangements is that they are both tasteful and simple; allowing the beauty of each carol to shine through. We are thrilled to share these with a wider audience with this new recording.” David Temple

The Christmas season can come. With this musical Advent calendar from the Landesmusikakademie Ochsenhausen, there is a new surprise every day. Each day of Advent has its own song to shorten the waiting time for children and families. Old and new Christmas carols in enchanting arrangements, sometimes contemplative, sometimes rousing and as if for dancing along, prepare us for a joyful pre-Christmas season. With the children's choir SingsalaSing, the Ulmer Spatzenchor and many more.

In the Revelation of James, an apocryphal gospel that was not included in the Bible, events and details surrounding the birth of Christ are reported that do not appear in the better-known versions of the Christmas story from the gospels of Matthew and Luke. The Christmas story is presented by James in a vivid, dramatic, and almost theatrical manner.

Howard Arman's Christmas Story follows the tradition of works such as Bach's "Christmas Oratorio", where newly-composed settings of the Gospel alternate with chorales. Here, Gregorian and polyphonic chorales as well as several motets from the 17th century are woven into Arman's composition and form a second narrative level. They frame the episodes of the Christmas story and can also be understood as musical reactions to the narrated events.

This new BR-KLASSIK CD is complemented by the chorales from Peter Maxwell Davies' Christmas cantata "O magnum mysterium". Arman contrasts the powerful language and mysticism of James’ gospel by reducing musical means to their essentials: monophonic singing, syllabically conceived solo passages and, as the only accompanying instrument, a hurdy-gurdy, which with its monotonous, archaic sound represents a certain timelessness. All of this results in maximum text comprehensibility, whereby the emotional declamatory singing style almost makes the figures resemble characters in a stage play. A key moment is Joseph's vision shortly before the birth of Christ: time seems to stand still, and the mystical and sublime aspect of this scene is intensified by poetic words full of linguistic contrasts and contradictions. – The chorales and motets integrated into Arman’s Christmas Story gradually develop ever greater polyphony. Thus, three settings by Nicolaus Zangius, Hieronymus Praetorius and Hans Leo Hassler, scored for ever greater numbers of voices, lead to a fourth, ten-part composition by Melchior Vulpius, which concludes with the words "Peace on earth". In its formal layout, Arman's Christmas Story bears similarities to Peter Maxwell Davies' cantata "O magnum mysterium". This work, written in 1960 for the choirmaster of Manchester Cathedral, also consists of chorales and instrumental sonatas, although the order is not compulsory. The four a cappella chorales in particular constitute a self-contained unit in terms of both content and music.

Tom Winpenny conducts this album of choral works by Elizabeth Poston (1905–1987) – an English composer renowned for her great sensitivity of word setting, a profound appreciation of ancient folk-song traditions, and timeless melodic charm. Performed by the Cathedral Girls Choir and Lay Clerks from St Albans Cathedral, located in her native Hertfordshire – this is the first album to be dedicated entirely to Poston’s work. Includes many world premiere recordings.

The internationally renowned pianist Caroline Fischer has put together an evocative holiday gift with her new GENUIN CD. For the recording, she sought out old and new Christmas melodies, well-known and unknown, and combined them to form a harmonious whole. Included are treasures such as Otto von Walden’s tender fantasy on “Es ist ein Ros entsprungen” and Gustav Lange’s enchanting version of “Silent Night” – some of these windfalls have been recorded on CD for the first time. Thoughtfully curated and recorded to the highest standard, the only thing really missing is the wrapping paper!

KultBlech is the brass ensemble of the Dresden Philharmonic Orchestra. KultBlech presents an album with subtly arranged and masterfully played Christmas music for brass! Under the baton of Steven Verhaert the one of a kind arrangements written especially for KultBlech Dresden by Markus Höller & Hans Reiner Schmidt make the christmas time humorous, lively and emotional! KultBlech Dresden takes you on an extraordinary Christmas musical journey around the world - and this every year! An album for the whole family!

CONTENTS:

• Joy to the world
• Engel auf den Feldern
• Hirten auf Reisen [Teil 1]
• Little drummer boy
• Weihnachten in Deutschland
• Amazing grace
• Euch ist ein Kindlein heut geborn
• Hirten auf Reisen [Teil 2]
• Weihnachten in Europa
• Stille Nacht
• Frohes Fest und gute Nacht
• You raise me up

Previously released on The Gift of Music label. David Hill is widely respected as a choral conductor. This album features music for Advent, Christmas and Epiphany for mixed voice choirs, blending the old (O come, o come, Emmanuel; Coventry Carol) and the new (Eric Whitacre’s Lux aurumque), in a superb celebration of the festive season.