hallelujah

The Donkey from The Friendly Beasts

I love Christmas music, but it feels a little strange to admit it. The reason, of course, is that there is so much bad music that falls into the category. My problem is that I feel barraged with the worst versions of even the better songs, as well as the treacly, sentimental, awful songs which -- as far as I can see -- have little to do with Christmas. But I can enjoy the season without becoming a total curmudgeon as long as I can shield myself a little -- and keep away from department stores.

In terms of choral music, I couldn't do without Saint-Saens' Christmas Oratorio, which is my favorite Christmas piece. It's slighter than the Messiah or many of the other oratorios which are favored around the season, but it seems more characteristic of the Christmas spirit to me -- which, to my mind, is not epic as much as quiet and filled with wonder. (Even those who aren't familiar with the oratorio might recognize the trio, "Tecum Principium," which is often heard in translated or instrumental versions.)

Camille Saint-Saens: Tecum Principium

A few years ago I got a little obsessed with finding some good vocal renditions of my favorite Christmas carols, and I was amazed at the range in quality you find in the readily available albums. The ones I found that I was most pleased with were wonderful collections from the Tewkesbury Abbey Choir, and another from The Sixteen and Harry Christopher.

Tewkesbury Abbey Choir: Quelle est cette odeur agreable

The Sixteen: In Dulci Jubilo

If you like fingerpicked guitar, John Fahey has a great Christmas album called A New Possibility. I'm generally not the biggest fan of what might be termed classical guitar, but Fahey's a real virtuoso who knows when to hold back, and he offers really nice takes on carols familiar and less so. In a somewhat similar vein, Pete Seeger's Traditional Christmas Carols record offers some beautiful folk-inflected carols with a lot more vitality than I find in most other renditions of these songs. A recent gift from Jeffrey, Willie Nelson's Pretty Paper provides less distinct imaginings of familiar songs, but it's nice to hear him handle the carols. I can almost listen to "Winter Wonderland" when it's Willie singing it. Almost.

John Fahey: Lo, How a Rose E'er Blooming

Pete Seeger: Masters in this Hall

Willie Nelson: Pretty Paper

We also get a lot of mileage out of Vince Guaraldi's Charlie Brown Christmas, mostly because the kids like to listen to "Linus and Lucy" for obvious reasons. "Skating" is great, too.

Vince Guaraldi: Skating

Of recent albums, we listen quite a bit to Sufjan Stevens -- his five Christmas eps are lovely, with inventive versions of traditional carols and a few great additions to the canon. It's his version of "The Friendly Beasts" that the kids, Linus especially, fell in love with. Jeff recently turned me on to an ep by Low, a band I had only listened to sporadically. "Just Like Christmas" is a beautiful song which I think will become a standard for our family. I might also recommend Julian Koster's Christmas album, which was just released. Koster is a multi-instrumentalist who played with Neutral Milk Hotel, and this record was produced entirely with the ethereal, icy sounds of the musical saw.

Sufjan Stevens: The Friendly Beasts

Low: Just Like Christmas

Julian Koster: The First Noel

Let us know some of your favorite albums and songs.

accolades

It's the end of the year, which means list season. I'll probably be posting a series of my favorite songs of the year a little later on, just to get in on the action. (It's compulsory on the internets.) So far I've just been enjoying reading some of the praise, and I'm obsessive-compulsive enough to appreciate the act of listing for its own sake.

It was a fairly rare pleasure to see someone I know singled out for honor. A few months ago, an illustrated children's book by Suzy Lee was reviewed by The Times, and got a front-page thumbnail. The Wave, published by one of my favorite houses, Chronicle Books, has now been named one of the top ten children's picture books of the year.
This wordless book narrates the encounters of its young protagonist at the seashore, and does a wonderful job depicting the shifting emotional reactions of the little girl to the wildness of the ocean. Its exuberant illustrations are a combination of acrylic (the monochromatic waves) and lively charcoal drawings (the girl, the horizon, the seagulls). I'd place it up there with Harry by the Sea (Gene Zion/Margaret Bloy Graham) and Mrs. Armitage and the Big Wave (Quentin Blake) among my favorite seaside picture books.

I met Suzy at the Museum of Printing History, where she was studying stone lithography with Charles Criner, our artist-in-residence. She became one of the early members of the Book Arts Group I founded with a Museum bookbinder, though she was only with us for a few months before moving to Singapore. One of my sorrows about my experience at the MPH is that I was not able to buy a copy of the illustrated book, The Black Bird, which she printed on the lithographic press there -- though I understand that a reproduction is available from a press in Korea and France.
At any rate, the children and I recommend Suzy's book (in fact, they bought it for my birthday). Now I need to get my hands on her other U.S.-printed book, The Zoo.