Christmas Music, New and Old
As we approach the Holiday Season, I wanted to share some of my arrangements of Christmas music. I always enjoy getting out my binder of winter-themed songs to practice, but am always seeking to learn new arrangements and styles of songs.
Piano Music
1. In The Bleak Midwinter
Let’s start with the classics. I’ve always loved Holst’s setting of “In the Bleak Midwinter” (poetry by Christina Rosetti). Last winter, I published a solo piano version of this song, and it quickly became my best selling arrangement!
2. Deck the Halls
I created a jazzed-up version of another classic Christmas song, “Deck the Halls”, intended for beginner-intermediate players.
This arrangement features a steady left hand with a syncopated melody.
3. The Holly and the Ivy
Lastly for traditional Christmas music is “The Holly and the Ivy”.
I made a lead sheet arrangement for ease of playing.
Lead sheets are a great way to begin to improvise with the Left Hand, guided by the chord symbols above the melody.
Vocal Music
Caroling is a staple of Christmas time. I’ve included vocal music from three different genres and artists for some variety!
1. A Christmas Carol - Charles Ives
Ives is known for his bizarre and extreme musical style, however, in his collection of 114 Songs, “A Christmas Carol” stands out as a sweet and simple piece. I arranged this piece for SATB A Cappella Choir, fitting for caroling or a Christmas service.
2. Home on Christmas Day
This charming piece was made popular by Kristin Chenowith in her 2008 album A Lovely Way to Spend Christmas. Here it is arranged for solo voice with piano accompaniment.
Secular Music
There’s lots of great secular music for winter, as well. Here are three options for solo piano; a European folk song, an arrangement of a Vivaldi piece, and finally an original composition of mine.
Winter - Folk Song
This is a charming folk song from the Bohemia region of Europe. This piece is great for beginner level students ready for a challenge, as the Left Hand gets a bit trickier on the second page.
I also made a simplified version with just the melody for the student, and chords for teacher accompaniment.
Largo (Winter) from The Four Seasons
The Four Seasons is probably one of the best known works of Baroque composer Antonio Vivaldi. It was groundbreaking for the time by representing images with music, known as “programmatic music”. This arrangement of a movement from the “Winter” section is lesser known, but still a great piece!
Music Box - Original Composition
This piece was originally intended as incidental music for a theatrical “radio show”. However, I reworked it for solo piano as I felt it truly had a music box quality and winter-ness to it.
I hope you found a new piece to add to your Christmas collection! You can browse my selection of Christmas and Winter music here. Or, check out my publisher profiles on Sheet Music Direct or Sheet Music Plus.
