It's the stories we tell.

Happy Yule!

I'm writing this late in the evening of December 21st. The sun set a long while ago, and though I don't know a a lot about Pagan beliefs, I do know that the Winter Solstice is associated with both bonfires and with Yule logs burning on the hearth.

It's a feast that uses fire and light to mark the turning of the wheel.

It's also the sixth night of Hanukkah, another holiday associated with light, and it happens to be the night of the annual Lessons & Carols concert at St. James Cathedral. I went to the concert, since my daughter sings in Jubliate!, the young women's ensemble. Each piece of lovely choral music was bracketed by a reading and a congretational hymn, and the gospel was from John, Chapter 1...

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
2 The same was in the beginning with God.
3 All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made.
4 In him was life; and the life was the light of men.
5 And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not.

More light for this longest night of the year.

I grew up Catholic, and have been a church musician since way back, so the stories in both the readings and the music were wonderfully familiar. The angel Gabriel visiting a young girl. Mary and Joseph and the baby and the manger. Three wise men from the east following a star. 

Great tidings of joy for the whole world.

Every holiday has stories associated with it, and every person who celebrates has their own favorites, their own experience with the traditions. Some things cross over, though, like fire and light on a cold December night.

And because even in tradition, there's a place for something new, I'm sharing a recording of "There Is No Rose" by Benjamin Britten, from A Ceremony of Carols. This is an old medieval poem set to music written in the 1940s. I've never sung this piece before - not sure I've ever even heard it before, but it might be my new favorite arrangement of the text. The young women from Jubilate! did a lovely job with it last night, though this isn't them in the recording. Enjoy!

I hope you have a lovely holiday, however you choose to celebrate.
Liv

Oy To The World

So on a discussion list I follow, someone posted the following question:

What's your favorite Christmas song or album/CD?

Hands down, for me, it's the "Oy To The World" CD by The Klezmonauts. What, you don't automatically associate Christmas with Klezmer music? Really?

Well, okay. I'll grant you it's not an automatic link. They go together like, maybe, peanut butter and potato chips. Different, and not to everyone's taste, but yummy if you're into it. In fact, I like this CD so well that I just went to Amazon and downloaded a copy to this laptop, because it was easier than going through our CD racks in the living room and finding the disc. Oh Amazon, you're just so...

Which brings me to the real point of this rant. Geez, but it is easy to buy shit off Amazon. Maybe too easy. Like, I'm wandering around the internet and I read a review of a book that sounds appealing. I make a couple clicks and get a sample sent to my Kindle. Then, a month or so later, I'm sitting at the kid's swim practice or standing at the bus stop or waiting for a delivery at work, and I read the sample. It is good! Click! Bingo! I've bought the book - and somehow they don't post the price where I can see it when I click the "buy it now" button.

And that's the craziest part. I'm such a book-whore that I try (tried?) to avoid paying full price whenever possible. I buy used or check things out from the library or wait for the paperback. Sorry, authors. Console yourself with knowing that while I might cheap out on the individual sale, I make up for it in volume (says the girl with multiple copies of most of what Charlaine Harris has ever written). I try to tell myself that there's a novelty factor involved, and that when I get used to it, I'll use more judgement about what goes on my Kindle or into my Amazon Cloud. Someday...

So here's a link (I think...you might need to copy and paste it into your browser) to The Klezmonauts on Amazon, in case all of this has inspired you to check them out.

http://www.amazon.com/Oy-World-Klezmonauts/dp/B00000FXN2/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1323182898&sr=8-1

And if you're additionally inspired, leave a recommendation in the comments for other Christmas music I should check out.

Peace,

Liv