Christmastime Is Here

In all honesty, this Holiday season has been a blur. I’m not about to say, “omg I’m so busy,” mainly because I know that everyone has been busy. I have, however, had the chance to take time to enjoy some of my favorite holiday traditions.

The Evansville Philharmonic Orchestra presented one of the best Peppermint Pops concerts that I have seen in a long time. Starting in high school and continuing for several years I was a member in the philharmonic chorus. It was always a special event…singing behind a full orchestra, getting to meet some very talented guest artist, and just being a part of sharing holiday spirits with so many people. While I would have given my left arm (I really have no need for it) to be on stage this year, I enjoyed being an audience member. This year one of the two guest soloist was Evansville native Steve Morgan. Mr. Morgan is one of the original members of Straight No Chaser. I am a huge fan of men’s a cappella groups…and these guys are amazing.

Music is always a central factor in this time of the year. From church to NPR broadcasts to singing in the shower…Christmastime is here. Speaking of church, this was the first year I have ever heard Lo, How a Rose E'er Blooming with a drum beat added. Oh well…

So…enjoy the Twelve Days of Christmas…Straight No Chaser style!

Wordless Wednesday

Free time + a Camera + antlers = ____________

The Most Wonderful Time of the Year

One of the things I look forward to every year is the day that I can break out my Holiday music and listen to it non-stop. I have rules about this: I DO NOT listen to holiday music until AFTER Thanksgiving and I stop listening to holiday music on Ephinany. In college I wouldn’t even take my very impressive collection of holiday music to school. It would wait in my room until my drive back to school after Thanksgiving. I would lay out the CDs in the passenger seat and sing along for the entire 9 hour trip back to Emory.

Things got more complicated with the coming of the iPod generation. I added all of my music. When I got to the holiday CDs it took great restraint to not add them. I didn’t. I still follow my rule. But now I don’t have two-dozen CDs to deal with….the best holiday music is all at my fingertip.

While I love the entire genre of Holiday music, I have a few songs that are my absolute favorite. This year I bought an album for one song, Christmas in Indiana. It is wonderful. It is performed by the a capella group “Straight No Chaser.” (for the record, a capella should always be two words, never hyphenated.) Straight No Chaser is an amazing group from Indiana University. I have been a fan of them for years, but this is their first Christmas album. I highly recommend it. The highlight of the album is their rendition of “The Twelve Days of Christmas.” Enjoy the video below. My favorite singers are the Jew and the black guy. Haha. You’ll see.

Another amazing arrangement of that song is “A Musicological Journey Through the Twelve Days of Christmas.” However I have not been able to find a decent recording. There is one on iTunes but it is men’s chorus and piano. It needs an orchestra.

Do you have a favorite Christmas song?

Straight No Chaser