Welcome to our holiday concert for 2023! We are presenting an evening of carols from around the world both ancient and new. On this page you can explore the biographies of the artists, learn some of the history of the pieces and read the lyrics. Hope you enjoy the music!
Le Revenant
For many years I have dreamed of playing in a large saxophone ensemble. I love getting my students together to do group pieces from both classical repertoire and pop music and I generally like ensembles made up of one instrument. Finally this year I pulled some of my favorite saxophone players from both the Capital Wind Symphony and Peabody Alumni to join me in an evening of Christmas Carols and my hope is to continue performing as an ensemble in the Washington DC region and beyond.
The name Le Revenant comes from the inventor of the saxophone, Adolphe Sax. When he was a child he was precocious and frequently had accidents that nearly proved fatal. Around his small Belgian town of Dinant he earned the nickname Ghost Child, which is Le Revenant in French. I loved this quirky nickname as it highlights his stubborn, reckless nature as well as his persistence in the face of danger.
about the musicians
maureen walsh-soprano saxophone
The Washington Post has described Maureen Walsh as bringing “consummate skill and interpretative sensitivity to the Schmitt, capturing every ounce of its dusky innuendos and mystical exoticism” after a performance with the National Symphony Orchestra. Miss Walsh was a prizewinner of the NSO young soloist competition as well as the Harold Randolf Prize and the Baltimore Music Club competition.
Miss Walsh has taken the saxophone from Alaska to Thailand with a blend of classical and contemporary programing which often features a visual element to enhance the experience. She performs extensively as a recitalist in the DC area and beyond in addition to her membership in the Capital Wind Symphony and as a founding member of the saxophone ensemble Le Revenant. She has self-released three albums including Saxophone at the Opera, Merry Christmas!, and Airs Espagnols.
Miss Walsh studied at the Peabody Conservatory with Gary Louie and received 3 degrees there including a masters. She also studied with the iconic Donald Sinta at the University of Michigan. Currently, she maintains a private studio in Silver Spring, MD with in person and online students from all over the country. To reach younger saxophone students she is developing the Suzuki method for modified reeded recorders in order to introduce the classical saxophone at an earlier age.
jason mcfeaters-soprano saxophone
Winner of numerous competitions and prizes, saxophonist Jason McFeaters, has performed extensively in the US and abroad. Praised by the press for his extraordinary musicianship and virtuosity, the Baltimore Sun wrote, “McFeaters exuded charisma and effortless virtuosity,” and the Washington Post wrote that “McFeaters played with gorgeous intensity and artistry.”
Mr. McFeaters has performed as a soloist with the symphonies of Baltimore, Fairfax, Frederick Youth, Fort Collins, Gettysburg, Georgetown, the Peabody Wind Ensemble, and the Capital Wind Symphony, of which he is the principal saxophonist. Since 2009, Mr. McFeaters has performed regularly with the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, including performances at the Kennedy Center and Carnegie Hall, and can be heard on the orchestra’s recordings of “Bernstein’s Mass” and “Gershwin Piano Concertos.” Other performances with the BSO include “On the Waterfront,” “Alexander Nevsky,” and “Fantasia.”
Mr. McFeaters has won prizes in the Yale Gordon Concerto Competition and Heida Hermann’s International Woodwind Competition. He won First Prize in the Shenandoah Valley Music Festival Concerto Competition, third in the Fort Collins Symphony Young Artist Competition, and in Marvin Hamlisch’s “Search for a Star.”
Jason McFeaters is a native of Baltimore, where he received his Bachelor’s Degree in Music Education from the Peabody Conservatory of Johns Hopkins University. He also holds a Masters Degree in Saxophone Performance from the University of Michigan.
In addition to his performance accomplishments, Mr. McFeaters has established himself as one of the premier teachers in the Washington, D.C., area. He has taught Saxophone and Theory at the Levine School of Music since 1999 and directed “Saxes at Strathmore,” one of the country’s largest saxophone-only summer camps for school-aged children. His private students have received the highest honors in county and state bands and festivals, several of whom have continued on to study music at major colleges and universities and continued into music as a profession.
Mr. McFeaters also chairs the music department at North Bethesda Middle School in Montgomery County, Maryland, where he has built and maintained one of the top choral programs in the state. He has worked as a guest conductor for several of the surrounding counties and has lectured at the Maryland Music Educators Association conference sessions on selecting repertoire, motivating students, and building a large program. Articles written about Mr. McFeaters’ teaching have been featured in the Gazette Newspaper and Bethesda Magazine. Mr. McFeaters has previously taught at the University of Michigan and the University of Windsor.
Tyrone page-alto saxophone
An accomplished saxophonist and educator, Tyrone Page Jr. has had tremendous success working with composers and other musicians to expand contemporary saxophone repertoire. Actively involved in the performance of new works, Page performs regularly in the Baltimore area and across the United States as a soloist, chamber, and orchestral musician. This past season, he joined the Symphony of the Mountains in a performance of Glazunov’s Concerto in E-flat Major.
Page was a Finalist in the 2018-2019 American Prize in Instrumental Performance, college division. In 2017, he won 1st place in the Elizabeth Harper Vaughn Concerto Competition and was a finalist in the Eastern Connecticut Symphony Orchestra Concerto Competition. The year before, Page placed 3rd in the 2016 Peggy and Yale Gordon Concerto Competition.
In collaborations with his alma mater, Page was featured in performances with the Peabody Concert Orchestra, Peabody Modern Orchestra, and the Peabody Wind Ensemble. Gaining proficiency with the contemporary repertoire, he’s a regular performer with Mind on Fire, a musical arts cooperative that strives to engage with an inclusive community through engaging concerts, outreach programs, and special events. In collaboration with the group’s Artistic Director, composer James Young, Page recently released an album recording of “True Fluorescent Skeleton” with Ehse Records. The piece is a 50 minute, unaccompanied work for tenor saxophone.
Page is the current Director of Bands at Oakland Mills Middle School and as a teaching artist with the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra’s OrchKids and the Baltimore School for the Arts TWIGS programs, he performs with, teaches, and mentors young students. At the Peabody Preparatory, he conducts the Wind Band and teaches a Repertoire Performance Class.
Page is a graduate of the Baltimore School for the Arts, where he studied with Dr. Chris Ford. He holds degrees in saxophone performance and music education from Peabody Conservatory of The Johns Hopkins University as well as a master of music in saxophone performance and wind conducting.
Stephen sim-alto saxophone and nathaniel casey-tenor saxophone
Our two youngest members are at the very beginning of their musical careers, working towards their degrees at the George Mason University. They have proven themselves to be valuable members of the Capital Wind Symphony and are currently planning to attend graduate schools. I am very excited to see their musical journey’s unfold!
stephen dunlap-baritone saxophone
Stephen Dunlap began his teaching career at Hammond High School in 2013 and is proud to be in his tenth year directing the school’s Wind Ensemble/Marching Band, Concert Band, Percussion Ensemble, and Jazz Band. Under his leadership, the Hammond band program has increased in size and has empowered students to become stewards of music in their community, including providing frequent community performances and offering traveling music lessons directly to Hammond’s feeder schools. He is also the co-director of the Howard County High School GT Band, an ensemble comprised of many wonderful musicians throughout Howard County.
An active performer, Stephen performs as a saxophonist with the Maryland Winds and has previously performed with the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, the Annapolis Symphony Orchestra, and the Castleton Festival Orchestra under the direction of Lorin Maazel. He is a graduate of the Peabody Conservatory of Music, where he received bachelor’s and master’s degrees in music performance, and of Johns Hopkins University, where he received a bachelor’s degree in neuroscience. In his free time, Mr. Dunlap hikes with his dog, Lucy, and explores National Parks in the summer.
about the music
sleigh ride by frederick delius (1862-1934)
The story goes that Delius’s Sleigh Ride was originally a piano work, Norwegische Schlittenfahrt (Norwegian Sleigh Ride) since lost. Philip Threlfall (1977) states that the piece was first performed in Leipzig on Christmas Eve 1887. Edvard Grieg, Johan Halvorsen and Christian Sinding (Rustle of Spring fame) attended a party. Lionel Carley (1993) has cited a letter written by Grieg to Frants Beyer (25/12/87): ‘After the meal we were, without exception, all plastered, but the programme had to be adhered to and it offered music, music and still more music! What a Christmas Eve! … Mr Delius played a piano piece which he calls ‘Norwegische Schlittenfahrt’ with great talent.’
The title of the orchestral piece in the original holograph was written as |Winternacht Charakter Stück für Orchester| |Fritz Delius| |1889|. It was subsequently changed to ‘Sleigh Ride’ which is an equally good, if a little less prosaic title.
The score carries the following note: ‘One Christmas eve I stood in the open air. The moon shone bright over the billowing landscape. The sound of an approaching sleigh was heard from a distance, but it soon rushed by and disappeared. And then gradually it was once stiller and brighter and peaceful.’ (Translated here from the German).
The ethos of ‘Sleigh Ride’ imagines the passing of a sleigh along a country lane in the depth of winter. It is composed in a straightforward ABAB form. I guess it is seen from the perspective a bystander. The sound of soft sleigh bells are heard as the sled approaches, followed by a gentle pizzicato figure. Then the main theme is heard, initially played on the piccolo. The music rises to a climax. After this subsides, Delius introduces a quieter, more reflective interlude. Soon, the main theme returns but now gets quieter as the sleigh disappears into the night. Delius concludes his tone poem with another dreamy interlude which evokes the moonlit and snowbound landscape in silence and repose. Who knows what the watcher is thinking? Perhaps they are recalling a winter’s night journey with someone he or she loved many years previously? Whatever the romance or otherwise behind this piece, the listener is in no doubt that this is a very chilly, frosty night.
Sleigh Ride was arranged by Nancy Nourse for 8 flutes and rearranged by Maureen Walsh for 6 saxophones.
a renaissance christmas for flutes
The Cancionero de Upsala (Songbook of Uppsala) is a collection of Spanish vocal and instrumental music printed in Venice in 1556. The sole surviving copy of the manuscript, also known as the Cancionero del Duque de Calabria, resides in Uppsala University Library. (The spelling discrepancy results from a major spelling reform in Sweden in 1906; the title of the collection bears the historical version of the city's name.)
Most works in the manuscript have no named composer, though Mateo Flecha, Juan del Encina, Cristóbal de Morales and Francisco de Guerrero are some of the more well-known names peppered throughout its contents.
All pieces share the form of the villancico, a common Iberian poetic and musical form popular from the fifteenth to the eighteenth centuries. The poetry, usually in the vernacular, comprises a refrain and several verses; the musical settings are generally simple in texture, with polyphony kept firmly in check. In this way, the words remain audible, and the songs accessible to a wide audience. (There's a little more to it than that, so do explore the genre further if you can.)
The four pieces in this set come from the section of the manuscript containing the works with texts specifically on the theme of Christmas.
Verbum caro factum est (Y la Virgen le dezía) alternates a Latin refrain ('And the Word was made flesh') with verses in Spanish in which Mary addresses her newborn Son. She wonders who shall clothe Him, thus emphasising His lowly state upon entering the world.
Dadme albricias, hijos d'Eva ('Congratulate me, sons of Eve') is an exuberant announcement of the Messiah's birth, and of the redemption from sin that such a birth may signify.
Yo me soy la morenica is a little less straightforward than the previous two. Its text is heavily influenced by The Song of Songs, with much talk of 'roses without thorns', 'maidens' and so forth. Essentially, this particular number is a paean to Mary.
E la don don Verges Maria is a foot-tapping little number which alternates simple triple and compound duple time signatures, and celebrates all aspects of the Nativity with a flamenco-tinged exuberance.
A Renaissance Christmas for Flutes was arranged by Ian D. Crew for four flutes and rearranged by Maureen Walsh for four saxophones.
away in a manger
"Away in a Manger" is a Christmas carol first published in the late nineteenth century and used widely throughout the English-speaking world. In Britain, it is one of the most popular carols; a 1996 Gallup Poll ranked it joint second. Although it was long claimed to be the work of German religious reformer Martin Luther, the carol is now thought to be wholly American in origin. The two most common musical settings are by William J. Kirkpatrick (1895) and James Ramsey Murray (1887).
Lyrics:
Away in a manger, no crib for a bed,
The little Lord Jesus laid down his sweet head.
The stars in the bright sky looked down where he lay,
The little Lord Jesus asleep on the hay.
The cattle are lowing, the baby awakes,
But little Lord Jesus, no crying he makes.
I love thee, Lord Jesus! look down from the sky,
And stay by my cradle till morning is nigh.
Be near me, Lord Jesus; I ask thee to stay
Close by me forever, and love me I pray.
Bless all the dear children in thy tender care,
And take us to heaven to live with thee there.
Silent night
It was 204 years ago when "Silent Night" was first heard by Austrian villagers attending Christmas Eve mass in St. Nicholas Church in Oberndorf. How did this simple melody, with its words of comfort, become a beloved hymn of peace throughout the world?
"Silent Night" is about a calm and bright silent night, and the wonder of a tender and mild newborn child, words written in 1816 by a young priest in Austria, Joseph Mohr, not long after the Napoleonic wars had taken their toll.
"The backstory is that the priest went for a walk before he wrote it, and he looked out over a very quiet, winter-laden town," says composer/conductor John Conahan, who co-organized the Silent Night Sing-In with WRTI in 2018 and 2019, and created a new arrangement of the famous carol. "He was inspired...the town was at peace."
It was Christmas Eve, 1818, when the now-famous carol was first performed as Stille Nacht Heilige Nacht. Joseph Mohr, the young priest who wrote the lyrics, played the guitar and sang along with Franz Xaver Gruber, the choir director who had written the melody.
An organ builder and repair man working at the church took a copy of the six-verse song to his home village. There, it was picked up and spread by two families of traveling folk singers, who performed around northern Europe. In 1834, the Strasser family performed it for the King of Prussia. In 1839, the Rainer family of singers debuted the carol outside Trinity Church in New York City.
The composition evolved, and was translated into over 300 languages with many different arrangements for various voices and ensembles. It was sung in churches, in town squares, even on the battlefield during World War I, when, during a temporary truce on Christmas Eve, soldiers sang carols from home. "Silent Night," by 1914, known around the world, was sung simultaneously in French, German and English.
Over the years, the carol's mystique grew with its popularity. After the original manuscript was lost, for decades, some speculated that the music had been written by Haydn, Mozart or Beethoven. In 1994, an original manuscript was found in Mohr's handwriting, with Gruber named as composer.
Today, the Franz Xaver Gruber Museum in Hallein and the Joseph Mohr School in Wagrain, Austria honor the creators of this classic carol. The Stille Nacht Gesellschaft—or Silent Night Society—hosts a virtual Silent Night museum, tracks events, and promotes the use of all six verses, which in the words of Silent Night Society president "[encourage] peace and [demand] responsibility for the globe."
The English version of "Silent Night" is typically sung in three verses corresponding with the original 1, 6, and 2.
Silent night, holy night, all is calm, all is bright. 'Round yon Virgin Mother and Child, Holy Infant so tender and mild. Sleep in heavenly peace, Sleep in heavenly peace.
Silent night, holy night! Shepherds quake at the sight! Glories stream from heaven afar, heavenly hosts sing Alleluia! Christ, the Savior is born, Christ, the Savior is born.
Silent night, holy night, Son of God, love's pure light. Radiant beams from thy holy face, with the dawn of redeeming grace. Jesus, Lord, at Thy birth, Jesus, Lord, at Thy birth.
Lyrics:
Silent night, Holy night
All is calm, all is bright
Round yon virgin mother and child
Holy infant, so tender and mild,
Sleep in heavenly peace
Sleep in heavenly peace
Silent night, holy night
Shepherds quake at the sight
Glories stream from heaven afar
Heavenly hosts sing Alleluia
Christ the Savior is born
Christ the Savior is born
Silent night, holy night
Son of God, love's pure light
Radiant beams from Thy holy face
With the dawn of redeeming grace
Jesus Lord, at Thy birth
Jesus Lord, at Thy birth
pat-a-Pan
"Patapan" (or "Pat-a-pan") is a French Christmas carol in Burgundian dialect, later adapted into English. It was written by Bernard de la Monnoye (1641–1728) and first published in Noël bourguignons in 1720. Its original title is "Guillô, Pran Ton Tamborin" ("Willie, Bring Your Little Drum" or "Willie, Take Your Little Drum").
The carol revolves around the birth of Jesus Christ, and is told from the perspective of shepherds playing simple instruments—flutes and drums—the onomatopoeic sound of which gives the song its name; "patapan" is meant to mimic the sound of the drum, and an accompanying lyric, "tu-re-lu-re-lu," the flute. This is similar conceptually to the carol "The Little Drummer Boy", with its chorus of "pa-rum-pa-pum-pum."
Lyrics:
Willie, bring your little drum, Robin take your flute and come!
When we hear the music bright we will sing Noel this night,
When we hear the fife and drum, Christmas should be frolicsome.
Thus the men of olden days for the King of Kings to praise,
When they heard the fife and drum, tu-re-lu-re-lu, pat-a-pat-a-pan,
When they hear the fife and drum, sure, our children won't be dumb.
God and man are now become more at one than fife and drum.
When you hear the fife and drum, tu-re-lu-re-lu, pat-a-pat-a-pan,
When you hear the fife and drum, dance and make the village hum.
bring a torch jeanette isabella
What we know today as the melody of Bring a Torch, Jeannette, Isabella (In French, “Un flambeau, Jeannette, Isabelle”) is almost certainly based on a drinking song composed by Marc-Antoine Charpentier, to be performed as incidental music for Molière’s Le médecin malgré lui (1666). The original French text by Émile Blémont, based on a 17th-century Provençal carol, first appeared with this melody in Noëls français (1901), a collection of French carols transcribed and harmonized by musicologist and composer Julien Tiersot. Two shepherdesses, Jeannette and Isabella, excited at finding the baby in the stable, are urged to bring torches. Torches remain a Christmas tradition in Provence, where children dress up as shepherds and milkmaids, carrying torches and candles to Midnight Mass while singing this carol.
Lyrics:
Bring a torch, Jeannette, Isabella.
Bring a torch, come hurry and run.
It is Jesus, good folk of the village,
Christ is born, and Mary’s calling:
Ah! Ah! Beautiful is the Mother, Ah!
Ah! Beautiful is the Child!
It is wrong when the baby is sleeping,
It is wrong to speak so loud;
Silence now, as you come near the cradle,
Lest you awaken little Jesus,
Ah! Ah! Beautiful is the Mother, Ah!
Ah! Beautiful is the Child
Skies are glowing, the heavens are cloudless,
Bright the path to the manger bed.
Hasten, all who would see little Jesus,
Shining bright as yonder star,
Ah! Ah! Beautiful is the Mother, Ah!
Ah! Beautiful is the Child!
O Come O come emmanuel
"O come, O come, Emmanuel" is a Christian hymn for Advent and Christmas. It is a translation of a Latin hymn, "Veni, Veni, Emmanuel." The 1861 translation, by John Mason Neale, from Hymns Ancient and Modern is the most notable in the English-speaking realm, but other English translations also endure. Adaptations into other modern languages (particularly German) are also in broad use.
The lyrics and the melody for "O come, O come, Emmanuel" emerged independently. The Latin text is first documented in Germany in 1710, whereas the melody most commonly associated in the English-speaking world has its origins in 15th-century France.
Lyrics:
1 O come, O come, Immanuel,
and ransom captive Israel
that mourns in lonely exile here
until the Son of God appear.
Refrain:
Rejoice! Rejoice! Immanuel
shall come to you, O Israel.
2 O come, O Wisdom from on high,
who ordered all things mightily;
to us the path of knowledge show
and teach us in its ways to go. Refrain
3 O come, O come, great Lord of might,
who to your tribes on Sinai's height
in ancient times did give the law
in cloud and majesty and awe. Refrain
4 O come, O Branch of Jesse's stem,
unto your own and rescue them!
From depths of hell your people save,
and give them victory o'er the grave. Refrain
5 O come, O Key of David, come
and open wide our heavenly home.
Make safe for us the heavenward road
and bar the way to death's abode. Refrain
6 O come, O Bright and Morning Star,
and bring us comfort from afar!
Dispel the shadows of the night
and turn our darkness into light. Refrain
7 O come, O King of nations, bind
in one the hearts of all mankind.
Bid all our sad divisions cease
and be yourself our King of Peace. Refrain
Lo how a rose e’er blooming
"Es ist ein Ros entsprungen" (literally "A rose has sprung up") is a Christmas carol and Marian hymn of German origin. It is most commonly translated into English as "Lo, how a rose e'er blooming" and is also called "A Spotless Rose" and "Behold a Rose of Judah". The rose in the German text is a symbolic reference to the Virgin Mary. The hymn makes reference to the Old Testament prophecies of Isaiah, which in Christian interpretation foretell the Incarnation of Christ, and to the Tree of Jesse, a traditional symbol of the lineage of Jesus. Because of its prophetic theme, the hymn is popular during the Christian season of Advent.
The hymn has its roots in an unknown author before the 17th century. It first appeared in print in 1599 and has since been published with a varying number of verses and in several translations. It is most commonly sung to a melody harmonized by the German composer Michael Praetorius in 1609. The hymn's popularity endures in the 20th and 21st centuries.
Lyrics:
A rose has sprung up
Es ist ein Ros entsprungen
Tender from a root
Aus einer Wurzel zart
As the ancients sang to us
Wie uns die Alten sungen
The style came from Jesse
Von Jesse kam die Art
And brought a little flower
Und hat ein Blümlein bracht
In the middle of the cold winter
Mitten im kalten Winter
Probably half the night
Wohl zu der halben Nacht
The little rose I mean
Das Röslein, das ich meine
This is what Isaias says
Davon Isaias sagt
Is Mary the pure one?
Ist Maria die reine
Who brought us the little flower
Die uns das Blümlein bracht
From God's eternal counsel
Aus Gottes ew'gem Rat
Did she give birth to a child?
Hat sie ein Kind geboren
And remained a pure maid
Und blieb ein reine Magd
Greensleaves
Frank Kidson once said, “The old English songs have frequent allusions to wearing the 'green gown', just, in the same manner, the Scotch ones speak of the loss of the snood or of the 'bonny broom'.”
Greensleeves is a musical composition with its roots in Tudor England, possessing elements of love and emotional declarations throughout. A perfect example of English folk music, it evokes the sensations of the renaissance and beautiful imagery of romantic fulfillment in its lyrics and music.
There are many who share a vivid imagination and believe that Greensleeves was played on a lute in Medieval times, until the 18th century, when the popularity of the instrument began to wane.
The lute’s exact origin is hard to come by but it can be said without uncertainty that it’s closely associated with the Arab "oud." The name oud means ‘wood’ and was distinguishable for its wooden soundboards as opposed to those made of animal skin.
The thirteenth century saw the rise of the western lute and its differentiation from the oud. Notable among the very first depictions of the lute is the illustration of a musician playing at a chess game in the literary work Libro de Juegos or the Book of Games, which was commissioned by Alphonso Xin in 1283.
Legendary composers such as Francesco da Milano and John Dowland, played the lute to mesmerize and amaze their audiences with the profound depth in their compositions.
The lute attained maximum prominence and fame in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. So, we can imagine the lute having continued to entertain audiences through Greensleeves. It was during this period when notated music became the custom, as opposed to the fashion for improvisation, which was prevalent before. Greensleeves, being a song of yearning and unrequited desires, goes along well with the beautiful notes of the lute.
The original composition of Greensleeves was 18 verses long and also appeared in a Medieval book, A Handful of Pleasant Delights, in 1584 in the form of A New Courtly Sonnet of the Lady Green Sleeves.
Greensleeves up to date has lasted for more than 400 years or even more in various literature and references. The fact that it is still utilized in media and popular modern works says a lot about its uniqueness.
One of the first known references to a Greensleeves ballad is dated back on September, 1580. One of the most circulated and believed rumors about this old folk song is that it was written by English monarch Henry VIII after he was rejected by his eventual wife, Anne Boleyn, during the beginning of their courtship. The lyrics are wrought with a sense of romantic pathos and yearning for love. Even though the song is thought to have a royal association, the lute may have very well immortalized it over the centuries.
Another couple of versions followed in 1581 and 1584, Richard Jones printed a final version of the folk song. Jones’s version, which was 'A New Courtly Sonnet of the Lady Green Sleeves', is the one we listen to today.
The song in its lines refers to a Lady Greensleeves, and in the 16th-century era, the green color was interpreted to have a sexual connotation. It's been suggested that green was symbolic of promiscuity and that the lady in question was a prostitute.
In “The Merry Wives of Windsor”, William Shakespeare mentions this folk song twice where, in Act Two, we can see- "I would have sworn his disposition would have gone to the truth of his words, but they do no more adhere and keep place together than the Hundredth Psalm to the tune of 'Green Sleeves'." Also, in Act Five, we behold- "Let the sky rain potatoes; let it thunder to the tune of 'Green Sleeves.'”
Numerous recordings of the song have taken place over the 20th century by Jazz artists, most memorably for a commercial of a blanket company. As decades turn into centuries, the popularity of this song will stay fresh and novel for generations to come.
Typical chord (harmonic) progression of lute traditional music and chord progression that was used for Greensleeves and What Child is This: If you think of the key of the song as minor key and use roman numeral system, the chord progression is going to be I minor - VII major - VI major - V major. With a number system, it's going to be 1 minor - 7 major - 6 major - 5 major. If you think of the key of this song as major key and use the roman numeral system, the chord progression is going to be VI minor - V major - IV major - III minor (or major). With a number system, it's going to be 6 minor - 5 major - 4 major - 3 minor (or major).
Lyrics:
Alas, my love, you do me wrong
To cast me off discourteously
For I have loved you well so long
Delighting in your company
Alas, my love, you do me wrong
To cast me off discourteously
And I have loved you well so long
Delighting in your company
Greensleeves was all my joy
Greensleeves was my delight
Greensleeves, my heart of gold
And who but my Lady Greensleeves
And I will pray to God on high
That thou my constancy may see
And that yet once before I die
Thou wilt vouchsafe to love me
Greensleeves was all my joy
Greensleeves was my delight
Greensleeves, my heart of gold
And who but my Lady Greensleeves
Come once again and love me, ooh
And love me
Carol of the bells
Although “Carol of the Bells” has become a popular tune during the holidays, the original lyrics had nothing to do with Christmas.
The song with a haunting four-note melody was originally a Ukranian folk song written as a “winter well-wishing song,” said Anthony Potoczniak, a Rice University anthropology graduate student who is studying the song’s history.
Written in 1916 by Ukrainian composer Mykola Leontovich and titled “Shchedryk,” the song tells the tale of a swallow flying into a household to proclaim the plentiful year that the family will have. The song’s title is derived from the Ukrainian word “shchedryj,” which means “bountiful.”
“The swallow is a herald of spring coming,” Potoczniak said, referring to its possible pre-Christian origins. The original lyrics describe the swallow calling out to the master of the home and telling him about all the wealth that he will possess — healthy livestock, money and a beautiful wife.
For a Christmas concert, a choir director by the name of Oleksander Koshyts commissioned Leontovich to write a song based on Ukrainian folk melodies. Using the four notes and original folk lyrics of a well-wishing song he found in an anthology of Ukrainian folk melodies, Leontovich created a completely new work for choir – “Shchedryk.”
“Very few people realize that the composition ‘Shchedryk’ was composed and performed during a time when there was intense political struggle and social upheaval in Ukraine,” Potoczniak said. The same choir director who commissioned the song formed the Ukrainian National Chorus, mandated by a fledgling Ukrainian government, in 1919 to promote Ukranian music in major cultural centers in the West. Touring across Europe and North and South America, the chorus performed over 1,000 concerts.
Meanwhile, back in Ukraine, the original folk melody that Leontovich used to compose his work was one of many well-wishing tunes sung in many Ukrainian villages on Jan. 13 — New Year’s Eve on the Julian calendar — usually by adolescent girls going house to house in celebration of the new year. As the girls sang the tune predicting good fortune, they were rewarded with baked goods or other treats.
The Ukrainian National Chorus did not limit its performances of “Shchedryk” to the Julian New Year, and the song became popular in other parts of the world as the choir introduced it to other nationalities, including the United States, where they first performed the song to a sold-out audience in Carnegie Hall Oct. 5, 1921.
When American choir director and arranger Peter Wilhousky heard Leontovich’s choral work, it reminded him of bells; so he wrote new lyrics to convey that imagery for his choir. He copyrighted the new lyrics in 1936 and also published the song, despite the fact that the work was published almost two decades earlier in Soviet Ukraine. In the late 1930s, several choirs that Wilhousky directed began performing his Anglicized arrangement during the Christmas holiday season.
Now called “Carol of the Bells,” the song has become associated with Christmas because of its new lyrics, which include references to silver bells, caroling and the line “merry, merry, merry, merry Christmas.”
American recordings of the song in English began to surface in the 1940s by such notable groups as Fred Warring and his Pennsylvanians, the Roger Wagner Chorale and Phil Spitalny’s “Hour of Charm All-Girl Orchestra.”
Since then the song has become a popular Christmas tune, particularly among choirs for whom the soprano-alto-tenor-bass arrangement of the song seems custom-made. The song’s opening lines, “Hark! How the bells, sweet silver bells,” coupled with the “ding, dong, ding, dong” countermelody, have been recorded in a variety of formats and styles – from standard choir arrangements to improvisational jazz to sultry soul. Last year at least 35 recordings of the song were available, Potoczniak said.
Despite the song’s ubiquitous presence during the holidays in the West, “Shchedryk” remains less popular in its country of origin, where songs like it are still performed on the eve of the Julian New Year.
In fact, when Potoczniak was directing a small group of amateur carolers in Ukraine, he was told that it was “out of place” for them to sing melodies like “Shchedryk” at Christmastime. He had moved there in 1992 to study ethnomusicology at the Lviv State Conservatory after earning a bachelor’s degree in music composition at Rice’s Shepherd School of Music in 1991. Potoczniak remembers that the first piece he had to learn for his choral conducting course at the conservatory was Leontovich’s original “Shchedryk.” At the time, he was unfamiliar with the song’s origin; however, he immediately recognized the melody as “Carol of the Bells.”
Potoczniak recalls how he and singers were caroling door-to-door with a “Shchedryk”-like melody he collected in a Western Ukrainian village. “One family told us it was too early to sing that song,” he said.
Because of his Ukrainian heritage, Potoczniak was motivated to investigate how a simple folk song performed in a remote Ukrainian village became a “super holiday hit” in the United States, and he incorporated tracing the song’s genealogy into his current graduate studies at Rice University.
Lyrics (modern, I could not find a translation of the original Ukrainian lyrics):
Hark! Hear the bells, sweet silver bells,
All seem to say, ding dong, m'kay.
Christmas is here, bringing good cheer,
To young and old, meek and the bold.
Ding-dong-ding-dong, that is their song,
With joyful ring, all caroling
One seems to hear, words of the cheer
From everywhere, filling the air, m'kay
Oh, how they pound, raising the sound
Or here and there, telling their tale
Gaily they ring, while People sing
Songs of the cheer, Christmas is here
On, on they send, on without end
Their joyful tone, to every home
Hark! Hear the bells, sweet silver bells
All seem to say, ding dong, m'kay
On, on they send, on without end
Their joyful tone, to every home.
Ding-dong-ding-dong m'kay-m'kay-m'kay, m'kay!
o holy night
"O Holy Night" (original title: Cantique de Noël) is a sacred song for Christmas performance. Originally based on a French-language poem by poet Placide Cappeau, written in 1843, with the first line "Minuit, Chrétien, c'est l'heure solennelle" (Midnight, Christian, is the solemn hour) that composer Adolphe Adam set to music in 1847. The English version (with small changes to the initial melody) is by John Sullivan Dwight. The carol reflects on the birth of Jesus as humanity's redemption.
In Roquemaure in France at the end of 1843, the church organ had recently been renovated. To celebrate the event, the parish priest persuaded poet Placide Cappeau, a native of the town, to write a Christmas poem. Soon afterwards, in that same year, Adolphe Adam composed the music. The song was premiered in Roquemaure in 1847 by the opera singer Emily Laurey.
Unitarian minister, music critic, and editor of Dwight’s Journal of Music, John Sullivan Dwight, adapted the song into English in 1855. This version became popular in the United States, especially in the North, where the third verse (including "Chains shall He break, for the slave is our brother, And in his name all oppression shall cease") resonated with abolitionists.
The wide vocal range of the song makes it one of the more difficult Christmas songs to execute properly. In French-language churches, it is commonly used at the beginning of the Midnight Mass.
Lyrics:
O holy night, the stars are brightly shining
It is the night of the dear Savior's birth
Long lay the world in sin and error pining
Till He appeared and the soul felt its worth
A thrill of hope, the weary world rejoices
For yonder breaks a new and glorious morn
Fall on your knees, oh, hear the angel voices
O night divine, O night when Christ was born
O night divine, O night when Christ was born
Led by the light of faith serenely beaming
With glowing hearts by His cradle we stand
So led by light of a star sweetly gleaming
Here came the wise men from the orient land
The King of kings lay thus in lowly manger
In all our trials born to be our friend
He knows our need, to our weakness no stranger
Behold your King, before Him lowly bend
Behold your King, your King, before Him lowly bend
Truly He taught us to love one another
His law is love and His gospel is peace
Chains shall He break for the slave is our brother
And in His name all oppression shall cease
Sweet hymns of joy in grateful chorus raise we
Let all within us praise His holy name
Christ is the Lord, then ever, ever praise we
His power and glory evermore proclaim
His power and glory evermore proclaim
the holy and the ivy
The melody for this popular carol is an old English folk song, and the lyrics date to at least the early 18th century. But the sacred symbolism of holly and ivy extends even further back into medieval England. Holly and ivy are traditional rivals in the forest, representing masculine and feminine traits respectively, and they have been customary Christmas decorations since the late medieval period.
The lyrics for this carol interpret the holly’s physical traits—blossom, berry, thorns, and bark—as parallel symbols of Mary and Christ. Given the ancient origins of the carol, it’s not surprising that the phrase “merry organ” from the song’s refrain is found in Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales, which may be the original source for that particular lyric.
Lyrics:
The holly and the ivy,
When they are both full grown,
Of all the trees that are in the wood,
The holly bears the crown:
O the rising of the sun
And the running of the deer,
The playing of the merry organ,
Sweet singing in the choir.
The holly bears a blossom,
As white as lily flower,
And Mary bore sweet Jesus Christ,
To be our dear Savior:
O the holly bears a berry,
As red as any thorn,
And Mary bore sweet Jesus Christ,
To do poor sinners good.
O the rising of the sun
And the running of the deer,
The playing of the merry organ,
Sweet singing in the choir.
The holly and the ivy,
When they are both full grown,
Of all the trees that are in the wood,
The holly bears the crown:
O the rising of the sun
And the running of the deer,
The playing of the merry organ,
Sweet singing in the choir.
niÑo lindo
"Child So Lovely"/ "Niño Lindo" is a traditional Christmas lullaby from Venezuela that is rooted in the Roman Catholic veneration of the Virgin Mary, although its use, for our purposes, extends beyond its Mariology Such veneration is particularly prominent in Hispanic cultures, where the Christmas creche, processions and tableaux with villancicos (Spanish carols), and Marian devotions find a heightened place at Christmastide. A full setting of the refrain and three stanzas of "Child So Lovely" may be found in the United Methodist Hymnal (1989), #222; the English translation was provided by George Lockwood, who prepared various Spanish-to-English texts for that hymnal.
The text of the refrain, presumably representing Mary's own words as she sang to the Christ child, is a simple verse that honors Jesus as Christ the Lord; it is a childlike confession that should come easily from God's children of any age. The tune, CARACAS (named after the capital of Venezuela), is equally straightforward: its mostly stepwise motion hovers over a simple bass line.
The simplicity of this lullaby does not need extensive "dressing up" during the Christmas season. Sing it as a solo, with a children's choir, or with the entire congregation during a church school program or carol service, possibly with the use of the trio setting (included here) for organ and/or other instruments. Combined with several other lullaby carols (eg., those mentioned above), "Child So Lovely" could be sung while nativity art is projected from slides and the Christmas story is acted in mime or drama.
Lyrics:
Beautiful Child, before you I surrender.
Beautiful Child, you're my God.
With your pretty eyes,
Jesus look at me,
and with just that
and with just that
I'll get consolation.
That beauty of yours,
That candor of yours,
steals my soul,
my soul steals,
steals my love.
My life, good of mine,
and my soul too,
I offer you, gladly,
I offer you, gladly,
surrendered at your feet.
Don't be absent from me
because without you what will I do?
When you leave,
when you leave
try to take me.
Goodbye, tender Infant,
goodbye, Child, goodbye
goodbye, sweet lover,
goodbye, sweet lover,
Goodbye, Child, goodbye.
the nutcracker
In 1816, E.T.A. Hoffman published The Nutcracker and the Mouse King, a sinister fairy-tale intended for adults. This version included a nefarious godfather, horrific battle scenes between toy soldiers and rats, and indifferent, neglectful parents. Marie’s multiple visits to the Kingdom of Toys are nightmarish hallucinations.
Alexandre Dumas’ version of the story, published in 1844, made it happier and more appropriate for children; in addition to the introduction of sweets, loving parents, and a mysterious but benign godfather, Marie’s adventure is presented as a wonderful dream. Dumas also changed the protagonist’s name to Clara, the name of the original Marie’s favorite doll.
The publication of this lighter version inspired Marius Petipa, chief ballet master of the Russian Imperial Ballet, to commission a ballet for the story. Peter Ilyitch Tchaikovsky was asked to write the music and Lev Ivanov created the choreography. The first production of The Nutcracker was at the Maryinsky Theatre in December 1892 in St. Petersburg, Russia.
The ballet incorporates several cultural references of the time, including Mother Ginger, who originated from a well-known candy tin sold in Russia in the 1890s: formed in the shape of a woman wearing a large skirt, the tin opened at the bottom to reveal the candies.
The Nutcracker was especially important to choreographer George Balanchine, as he had matured from boy to man in this ballet. His first Nutcracker role was a mouse; at 15 years old, he played the Nutcracker/Little Prince role; and later the Mouse King, before portraying the Jester. The Jester’s choreography was his favorite, and he re-imagined it in his own version as the Candy Cane. Throughout his life, he continued to feel proprietary about the role: “Not bad” he once told a dancer, “but you know I did it faster.”
The Nutcracker is so fantastic for children – both those in the audience and on the stage – because it is about them. Balanchine felt strongly about giving children the opportunity to be on stage, seeing it as a vital part of training the next generation of dancers. He often incorporated children’s parts into his ballets, and The Nutcracker is the ideal example. Importantly, he paid much attention to making sure the children’s roles were age appropriate: The Angels are an excellent example, as they must remember only lines and formations instead of specific steps; another is the children at the Party, whose roles are mainly pantomiming and some simple dancing. Balanchine’s dedication to dance education is a view shared by Philadelphia Ballet, which includes students from School of Philadelphia Ballet in many of its productions.
Though The Nutcracker is considered by many to be a holiday tradition, in Russia it is performed throughout the year; it was Balanchine’s Nutcracker that propelled the ballet to dominate Christmas in the United States. Philadelphia Ballet has been performing The Nutcracker every year since 1968, making 2018 the 50th anniversary of the holiday tradition. The complete Balanchine version was first presented by Philadelphia Ballet in 1987.
The Dances:
Chocolate is given a Spanish dance with a brilliant solo for the trumpet.
The coffee is evidently Arabian, although its convincingly Oriental music with droning accompaniment is actually based on a Georgian lullaby.
Chinese Tea makes a fleeting appearance, a jogging number with jingling bells and an acrobatic flute.
The Trepak, a Russian Dance, begins “molto vivace” (very lively) and accelerates from there. Following its rumbustious finish the music immediately takes on a dainty character for the Dance of the Mirlitons. (A mirliton is both a reed pipe, a kind of kazoo, and a tube-like pastry dessert.) A trio of flutes play perfectly coordinated arabesques while the English horn offers its poignant view of affairs.
Mère Gigogne (Mother Ginger) is the French equivalent of the Old Woman Who Lived in a Shoe.
the snow lay on the ground
This is an arrangement of an old English Christmas carol called "The Snow Lay on the Ground". Unfortunately, not much is known about the origins of this carol. The tune: VENITE ADOREMUS (COME LET US ADORE HIM) is sometimes referred to as the BAGPIPER’S CAROL because it seems to be based on an old Italian "pifferari", or "piper's tune", which is traditionally played as a lively dance tune. The English text seems to have been written sometime during the 17th century, and started appearing in various English hymnals by the mid-1800's. It has become popular among door-to-door caroler groups, and also with church hand bell choirs.
Lyrics:
1. The snow lay on the ground, the stars shone bright,
when Christ our Lord was born on Christmas night.
Venite adoremus Dominum.
Venite adoremus Dominum.
Venite adoremus Do minum.
Venite adoremus Dominum.
2. 'Twas gentle Mary maid, so young and strong,
who welcomed here the Christ child with a song.
She laid him in a stall at Bethlehem;
the ass and oxen shared the roof with them.
Venite adoremus Dominum.
Venite adoremus Dominum.
3. And Joseph too was there to tend the Child,
to guard him, and protect his mother mild.
The angels hovered round and sang this song:
Venite adoremus Dominum.
Venite adoremus Dominum.
Venite adoremus Dominum.
4. And thus that manger poor became a throne,
for he whom Mary bore was God the Son.
Oh come, then, let us join the heavenly host,
to praise the Father, Son and Holy Ghost.
Venite adoremus Dominum.
Venite adoremus Dominum.
This version was arranged for choir and piano by Julian Wachner and rearranged for six saxophones by Maureen Walsh.
lux aeterna I. Introitus by Morten lauridsen (written 1997)
The music of Morten Lauridsen occupies a permanent place in the standard vocal repertoire of the Twenty-First Century. His eight vocal cycles, instrumental works, art songs and series of sacred Latin motets are performed throughout the world and have been recorded on over two hundred CDs, including several that have received Grammy nominations.
Lauridsen composed the requiem Lux Aeterna in 1997, the year his mother died. The five movements of Lux Aeterna are based on various references to light from sacred Latin texts: perpetual light, light risen in the darkness, Redeemer-born light from light, light of the Holy Spirit, light of hearts, most blessed light, eternal light — all supporting an earthbound spirit seeking not only mercy, understanding, and consolation but also renewal.
Movement I. Introitus:
Lauridsen uses the beginning and ending of the traditional Requiem Mass to open and close Lux Aeterna. The second movement, “In Te, Domine, Speravi” (Lord, I have hoped in you), opens with a chant from the hymn “Herliebster Jesu” (Dearest Jesus) published in a 1677 songbook, addressed to the trusted Lord, to whom is directed the gentle plea for mercy.
Introitus from Lux Aeterna was rearranged for six saxophones by Maureen Walsh.
joy to the world
"Joy to the World" was written by English minister and hymnist Isaac Watts, based a Christian interpretation of Psalm 98. The song was first published in 1719 in Watts' collection The Psalms of David: Imitated in the language of the New Testament, and applied to the Christian state and worship. The paraphrase is Watts' Christological interpretation. Consequently, he does not emphasize with equal weight the various themes of Psalm 98. In first and second stanzas, Watts writes of heaven and earth rejoicing at the coming of the King. Watts also didn't write this to originally be a Christmas carol, as the lyrics do not reflect the Virgin birth of Jesus, but rather Christ's Second Coming. Stanza three, an interlude that alludes to Genesis 3:17-19 rather than to the psalm text, speaks of Christ's blessings extending victoriously over the realm of sin. The cheerful repetition of the phrase "far as the curse is found" has caused this stanza to be omitted from some hymnals. But the line makes joyful sense when understood from the New Testament eyes through which Watts interprets the psalm. Stanza four celebrates Christ's rule over the nations." The nations are called to celebrate because God's faithfulness to the house of Israel has brought salvation to the world.
Lyrics:
Joy to the world! the Lord is come;
Let Earth receive her King;
Let every heart prepare him room,
𝄆 And heaven and nature sing, 𝄇
And heaven, and heaven, and nature sing.
Joy (Peace) to the world! the Savior reigns;
Let men their songs employ;
While fields and floods, rocks, hills, and plains
𝄆 Repeat the sounding joy, 𝄇
Repeat, repeat the sounding joy.
No more let sins and sorrows grow,
Nor thorns infest the ground;
He comes to make His blessings flow
𝄆 Far as the curse is found, 𝄇
Far as, far as, the curse is found.
He rules the world with truth and grace,
And makes the nations prove
The glories of His righteousness,
𝄆 And wonders of His love, 𝄇
And wonders, wonders, of His love.
This version was arranged for chorus and orchestra or organ by Julian Wachner and rearranged for six saxophones by Maureen Walsh.