WChristmas music comprises a variety of genres of music regularly performed or heard around the Christmas season. Music associated with Christmas may be purely instrumental, or in the case of carols or songs may employ lyrics whose subject matter ranges from the nativity of Jesus Christ, to gift-giving and merrymaking, to cultural figures such as Santa Claus, among other topics. Many songs simply have a winter or seasonal theme, or have been adopted into the canon for other reasons.
WAll I Want for Christmas Is You, a Night of Joy and Festivity is the first concert residency by American singer Mariah Carey. Performed annually at the Beacon Theatre in Manhattan, New York, the residency began on December 15, 2014, and ended on December 15, 2019, after completing eight legs and fifty-six shows. Billboard revealed that the six dates had sold out with a total of 16,196 tickets while grossing $1.5 million during the first leg of the residency. The main set list for the show encompassed songs from Merry Christmas and Merry Christmas II You, with additional non-holiday tracks.
WThe Canonic Variations on "Vom Himmel hoch da komm' ich her", BWV 769, are a set of five variations in canon for organ with two manuals and pedals by Johann Sebastian Bach on the Christmas hymn by Martin Luther of the same name. The variations were prepared as a showpiece for Bach's entry as fourteenth member of Mizler's Music Society in Leipzig in 1747. The original printed edition of 1747, in which only one line of the canon was marked in the first three variations, was published by Balthasar Schmid in Nuremberg. Another version BWV 769a appears in the later autograph manuscript P 271, which also contains the six trio sonatas for organ BWV 525–530 and the Great Eighteen Chorale Preludes BWV 651–668. In this later version Bach modified the order of the variations, moving the fifth variation into a central position, and wrote out all the parts in full, with some minor revisions to the score.These [variations] are full of passionate vitality and poetical feeling. The heavenly hosts soar up and down, their lovely song sounding out over the cradle of the Infant Christ, while the multitude of the redeemed "join the sweet song with joyful hearts." But the experiences of a fruitful life of sixty years have interwoven themselves with the emotions which possessed him in earlier years ... The work has an element of solemn thankfulness, like the gaze of an old man who watches his grandchildren standing round their Christmas tree, and is reminded of his own childhood.The brilliant scale passages not only represent the ascending and descending angels, but sound joyous peals from many belfries ringing in the Saviour's birth.
WConcerto grosso in G minor, Op. 6, No. 8 by Arcangelo Corelli, known commonly as the Christmas Concerto, was commissioned by Cardinal Pietro Ottoboni and published posthumously in 1714 as part of Corelli's Twelve concerti grossi, Op. 6. The concerto bears the inscription Fatto per la notte di Natale. Its composition date is uncertain, but there is a record of Corelli having performed a Christmas concerto in 1690 for the enjoyment of his new patron.
WChristmas in NYC Live In Concert is a concert residency by American singer Lea Michele, in support of her third studio album and first holiday album, Christmas in the City. The residency was performed at The Concert Hall at NY Society for Ethical Culture in New York City.
WThe Christmas Oratorio, BWV 248, is an oratorio by Johann Sebastian Bach intended for performance in church during the Christmas season. It was written for the Christmas season of 1734 and incorporates music from earlier compositions, including three secular cantatas written during 1733 and 1734 and a largely lost church cantata, BWV 248a. The date is confirmed in Bach's autograph manuscript. The next performance was not until 17 December 1857 by the Sing-Akademie zu Berlin under Eduard Grell. The Christmas Oratorio is a particularly sophisticated example of parody music. The author of the text is unknown, although a likely collaborator was Christian Friedrich Henrici (Picander).
WThe Christmas Story (Weihnachtshistorie), SWV 435, is a musical setting of the Nativity in German by Heinrich Schütz, probably first performed in 1660 in Dresden. It was published as Historia der Geburt Jesu Christi.
WCzech Christmas Mass is a classic pastoral mass written by the Czech composer Jakub Jan Ryba in 1796. Because of its opening words, it is also known as Hail, Master! or Hey, Master!. Czech Christmas Mass was composed in a frame of the traditional Latin mass, the story is based on the Christian theme of the birth of Jesus of Nazareth. Despite this, the work has a rather pastoral character with emphasis on a Czech description of the nativity in a Czech setting. During the centuries, the composition became the most popular Christmas mass in Czech countries and one of the musical symbols of Czech Christmas.
W"Bóg się rodzi" is a Polish Christmas carol, with lyrics written by Franciszek Karpiński in 1792. Its stately melody is traditionally known to be a coronation polonaise for Polish Kings dating back as far as during the reign of Stefan Batory in the 16th century. The carol is regarded by some as the National Christmas hymn of Poland, and, for a short time, it was also considered a national anthem, for instance by poet Jan Lechoń. It has also been called "One of the most beloved Polish Christmas carols".
WLux Aurumque is a choral composition in one movement by Eric Whitacre. It is a Christmas piece based on a Latin poem of the same name, which translates as "Light, warm and heavy as pure gold, and the angels sing softly to the new born babe". In 2000, Whitacre set a short Latin text for mixed choir a cappella. In 2005, he wrote an arrangement for wind ensemble. The choral version became known through Whitacre's project Virtual Choir in 2009. The piece is also available for men's choir. A performance takes about four minutes.
WNorthern Light Orchestra is a Christmas-themed supergroup, founded in 2009, and composed of more than 20 artists who are already successful in heavy metal, hard rock bands. The group's music has been compared to Trans-Siberian Orchestra.
WThe Oratorio de Noël, Op. 12, by Camille Saint-Saëns, also known as his Christmas Oratorio, is a cantata-like work scored for soloists, chorus, organ, strings and harp. While an organist at La Madeleine, Saint-Saëns wrote the Christmas oratorio in less than a fortnight, completing it ten days before its premiere on Christmas 1858. The vocal score of this oratorio was prepared later by the composer and organist Eugene Gigout, a colleague of Saint-Saëns.
W"Puer natus est nobis" is a Gregorian chant, the introit for Christmas Day. Thomas Tallis wrote a Christmas mass on the chant.
WSilent Night – A Benefit for Feeding America was a digital solo piano single released in December 2013 by pianist George Winston. The proceeds from the single, which was inspired by both Joseph Byrd's version from his 1975 album, A Christmas Yet to Come, as well as the playing of the New Orleans R&B pianist Professor Longhair, are donated to Feeding America, the nationwide network of food banks that feeds 37 million people.
WA Singing Christmas Tree, sometimes called a Living Christmas Tree, is an artificial Christmas tree filled with singers used as part of nativity plays.
WTubaChristmas is a music concert held in cities worldwide that celebrates those who play, teach, and compose music for instruments in the tuba family, including the tuba, sousaphone, baritone, and euphonium, though some participants bring rarer members of the family such as the helicon, ophicleide, serpent and double bell euphonium.
WFrom medieval times up to the early 19th century, every British town and city of any note had a band of waites. Their duties varied from time to time and place to place, but included playing their instruments through the town at night, waking the townsfolk on dark winter mornings by playing under their windows, welcoming Royal visitors by playing at the town gates, and leading the Mayor's procession on civic occasions. These musical bands were often attired in colourful liveries and in some cases wore silver chains.
WThe Wizards of Winter is a progressive rock holiday music band from the tri-state area of New York, New Jersey and Connecticut working under the label Breaking Bands, LLC. They are an eclectic group of musicians with strong classical and progressive rock influences woven throughout their musical careers.