Frydmania

Christmas soundtracks

So which is the Christmas song that does it for you - that let’s you know Christmas is here?  Do you need to stand up and bellow “it’s Christ-mas!” to get in the mood?  Do you need some sleigh bells to jingle in the snow?

I am intrigued to know, because I am attempting to listen to Christmas-related music while Dan writes Christmas cards - and clearly, Christmas songs are a broad church.  Admittedly, I’m listening to an Ultralounge Christmas collection, which makes it a slightly more chi-chi experience, but there’s certainly some stuff there that I struggle to relate to Christmas, apart from the slight note of cheese, which probably has to accompany many seasonal song collections.

Clearly, it’s something people take seriously, because otherwise, why would there be so many Christmas compilations on sale in the shops?  And admittedly, if you give lots of parties at that time of year, it could be handy to have a collection of songs to put on that help your guests get in the mood. 

Dan points out at this point (clearly he’s not concentrating that hard on the cards) that you could have a variety of Christmas collections, according to the various groups you might be dealing with at the meet and greet time of year.  The subsets appear to be: cheesy, carols, classical music that makes you think of Christmas, rock Christmas.

So, for your entertainment, we present some of the music that helps us start to feel a bit more ready for/interested in Christmas.  Mine combines classical and cheese, as I grew up listening to James Last German Christmas carols and classical music most years, while decorating the Christmas tree with my family.  I downloaded it recently, and now the cheese factor does come through more than it did when I was 7, shall we say.  But heck, German Christmas carols are really good, and bring us close to the second entry, which is Christmas related choral music.

When I was at secondary school, and getting into singing, we attempted our first oratorio type stuff in school choir: Vivaldi’s Gloria, plus Benjamin Britten’s Ceremony of Carols.  Not hugely well known, but a good excuse to sing a bit of Latin, bit of medieval English.  The older the carol, the more it’s likely to challenge what you think the season is about.  “This little babe, so few days old, is come to rifle Satan’s hold…”  Not a crowd pleaser chorus, no mention of figgy pudding, but one that sticks in the mind.

While I’m at it, I’ll add my favourite carol, the Coventry Carol (Lullay, thou little tiny child).  It does that great thing of being mysterious, beautiful, a bit scary (Herod the king, in his raging…), and uplifting (the wonderful change to a major key at the end of the piece). 

We have to even the score at this point, and let Dan have an entry.  His Christmas album is Take 6’s ‘He is Christmas’, which has probably become our joint ‘getting ready for Christmas’ album to put on.  Lots of joy, lots of peace.  I have also just consulted Dan on his favourite carol, which is Hark the Herald Angels Sing. 

So there you have it.  Feel free to add your own faves below.  I’ve just realised that I have to add Mike Oldfield’s “In Dulci Jubilo” for a bit more cheese but good quality jingling.  Moreish, these Christmas tunes. 

1 comment December 7th, 2008

Bright lights, big city

Late night shopping eh? It takes on a different edge in the weeks leading up to Christmas. Crowds five deep, an air of slight panic among the shoppers - and the shop staff, who are piling on the discounts to get people through the door.  But this is Edinburgh, and the setting is a definite incentive - even if only to find a safe place to stand in order to look at the lights.

Edinburgh has its light switching on evening at the end of November - although I’ve discovered that in fact it has several of these, beyond the one that puts on the lights on the Christmas tree on the Mound.  The Grassmarket has its own; Leith seems to have one too. 

But the one I’m looking out for is the star on top of the City Chambers.  It’s of the ‘lots of sticky out lines’ kind of star that you learn to draw when you’re small.  It’s not the most modern or distinctive of items, but I realised the other day that you see the star on the horizon, all the way to the north at the top of Inverleith Row.  This means that you feel slightly like a wise man, ‘following the star’, while on the bus heading to work.

I’m also keen on the ‘bare tree branches covered in lights’ kind of decoration.  Most years, they brighten up the edge of Princes Street.  This year, they’ve added them to trees in St Andrews Square - a sign that someone is determined to keep one of the better redone parks of Edinburgh sleek and beautiful, by night as by day.

But my other favourite Christmas decorations are a little more of the regular shopping track.  They are, again, to be admired on my bus route, this time heading home.  Close to Tesco’s by Broughton Street, there is a car park where you can buy Christmas trees.  That’s not the sight - it’s all the lights strung down the big stone wall by the car park, along with the conveniently placed ivy which grows there all year long.

And just at the bottom of that hill, as the wall stops, there’s a little church building, which looks more like a house, but puts up the most fantastic nativity picture, in a slightly Russian Orthodox style around the eyes of the figures.  Having lived close to there in our previous flat, I’ve had the privilege of looking out for these for around 8 years now, and that’s good enough for a Christmas tradition for me.

Beyond these familiar sights, coming across them means I’m heading home - and for all of the distractions of a big wheel and carousels, back in town, it’s home that’s our favourite sight at this time of year.  Mine, anyway.

Add comment December 7th, 2008