The Whole Music Experience

Holiday Recordings 2011 Cantus Christmas with Cantus Independent release Elisabeth Lohninger Band Christmas in July Jazz Sick Records Putumayo Presents Celtic Christmas Putumayo World Music Secret Garden Winter Poem Heart of Space Records/Valley Entertainment I find holiday music deeply healing.  Here we are in the midst of the darkest time of year, but like a cup of hot chocolate or lights strung along houses, holiday music offers us warmth and comfort. When I was a child, I couldn't wait for the holidays to arrive because I could pull out the Christmas albums and sing along with them.  I lost all sense of time and space.  I felt joy singing those songs, even the sad ones.  The first song I ever learned to play on the parlor organ was Silent Night and to this day, I still find the melody haunting.  My brother loved the song Do You See What I See? and certainly it was a favorite of mine too. Ther...

Cantus That Eternal Day Independent release I’m not a religious person, but I enjoy some choral music especially when it’s sung a cappella as it is on Cantus That Eternal Day. The Twin Cities (Minnesota) nine voice men’s choir has already been lauded with praise by Fanfare and for good reason. The men sing perfectly calibrated harmonies delivered with contagious enthusiasm—think African American gospel (listen to the driving Run On ),  and Shaker songs. Think Aaron Copland’s Appalachian Spring rendition of  Simple Gifts which appears also appears on this disk. Listening to this collection of songs ranging from African American spirituals, to Sacred Harp Hymns, and Shaker tunes, you can hear the love and research that went into this project. From American colonial composers to Goin’ Home by Antonìn Dvořàk and Bobby McFerrin’s The 23rd Psalm , Cantus pulls many colorful threads together into a musical quilt. The album can be viewed as a music history document, a co...