Sarah McLachlan - "In The Bleak Midwinter"

As every Holiday Season, this month I’ll be choosing only Holiday Songs from as many holidays as I can.

Her musical style has been iconic since her emergence in the 90’s with her Albums “Surfacing” and “Fumbling Towards Ecstasy”. She has a sound and a vocal cadence that everyone knows the moment they hear it. Hers has been a long and storied journey through music. Beginning in a time when women still really had to fight to be on the airwaves of radio she began a Music Festival that fought back for women and started a feminine music movement. We all remember Lilith Fair.

In her Holiday Album “Wintersong” she found something divine. Just like idea of the solstice, or the divine light coming down to the earth in our darkest hour to show us the way, her album dropped into our lives and changed the holiday landscape. It said this doesn’t have to be a christian album, or religious, it just has to be beautiful and meaningful; and it was.

So today, with the light of love and joy surrounding my little family, I choose Sarah McLachlan’s "In The Bleak Midwinter" as my, make it meaningful to you, no matter how grey the skies may be, without fear or hesitation, song for a, give them more grace than they deserve, don’t let go yet, make the promise to yourself, Monday.

The Cathedral Singers - "Fum, Fum, Fum" & Boston Camerata - "Riu Riu Chiu"

As every Holiday Season, this month I’ll be choosing only Holiday Songs from as many holidays as I can.

Today’s songs are memories of my youth. Singing in choir after chorus after chamber group after madrigal group after choir I learned songs I never would have heard, or cared about. Now these songs, when they pop up on the classical radio station, or in stores when I’m shopping, remind me of holidays past, and the memories made then.

The past isn’t truly gone, you can relive it all you want in your mind. Just don’t spend so much time there that you stop making meaningful memories in the present.

Ríu Ríu Chíu, also known as Ríu Chíu, is a Spanish villancico that has attained some contemporary fame as a Christmas carol. It depicts a rushing river stopping a wolf from attacking the sheep.

Fum, Fum, Fum is a traditional Catalan Christmas carol.

It is thought to have originated in the 16th or 17th century. The word "fum" means smoke in Catalan, and it may simply refer to the smoke rising from a chimney as seen from afar, or, as indicated in the New Oxford Book of Carols, "may imitate the sound of a drum (or perhaps the strumming of a guitar)".  It is not typical of Spanish tradition but rather of Catalan tradition. 

So today, walking down memory lane, I choose The Cathedral Singers’ version of "Fum, Fum, Fum" & Boston Camerata’s rendition of "Riu Riu Chiu" as my, remember, smile, sing, song for a, walk on, chin up, eyes shining, Friday.

Reid Lee - "Hard Candy Christmas/River" Medley

As every Holiday Season, this month I’ll be choosing only Holiday Songs from as many holidays as I can.

A few years ago I sang this medley, and then last weekend I picked it back up, restructured it, and sang it again. I can say I like the new version (and my performance) a lot better, but I’m glad this exists out in the world. It isn’t perfect, by any means, but then again something doesn’t need to be perfect to be meaningful.

So, today, barely getting through, I choose Reid Lee’s version of “Hard Candy Christmas & River” as my, keep trying, practice makes perfect, eventually you’ll find the version that fits, song for a, holidays from the heart, love blooms where it is planted, keep tending the soil and have faith, Thursday.

Vince Guaraldi Trio - "Christmastime Is Here"

As every Holiday Season, this month I’ll be choosing only Holiday Songs from as many holidays as I can.

His music was the soundtrack for a generation. He helped make jazz popular, and then made it classic. His touch on the heart of American Music will never be forgotten.

Vincent Anthony Guaraldi, born Vincent Anthony Dellaglio, was an American jazz pianist noted for his innovative compositions and arrangements and for composing music for animated television adaptations of the Peanuts comic strip including their signature melody, "Linus and Lucy" and the holiday standard, "Christmas Time Is Here". He is also known for his performances on piano as a member of Cal Tjader's 1950s ensembles and for his own solo career. His 1962 composition "Cast Your Fate to the Wind" became a radio hit and won a Grammy Award in 1963 for Best Original Jazz Composition.

"Christmas Time Is Here" is a popular Christmas standard  and was written by Lee Mendelson and Vince Guaraldi for the 1965 television special A Charlie Brown Christmas,  one of the first animated Christmas specials produced for network television in the United States.

Two versions were included on the album A Charlie Brown Christmas: an instrumental version by the Vince Guaraldi Trio and a vocal version by choristers from St. Paul's Episcopal Church in San Rafael, California who had previously performed with Guaraldi on At Grace Cathedral (1965).

So today, wistfully, I choose Vince Guaraldi’s “Christmas Time Is Here” as my, hold on to the memories, light the little candles, turn on the tree, song for a, spirit in the air, be the light you’re looking for, you still carry it within you - just keep going, Wednesday.

As a bonus, I’m giving both the instrumental and the vocal versions!

John Williams - "Home Alone Theme"

As every Holiday Season, this month I’ll be choosing only Holiday Songs from as many holidays as I can. 

Today’s choice is filled with nostalgia, and indeed is written around the theme that somewhere in your memories you can relieve all your happiest holidays, and bring back to life those you’ve lost. It’s sometimes an uphill battle to bring out the Christmas cheer, to balance all the tasks that need doing, to hold on to the joy as you frantically purchase things you can barely afford. But if you just keep believing, you’ll make it through. You have a 100% success rate for making it through tough times.

Regarded by many as one of the greatest film composers of all time, he has composed some of the most popular, recognizable, and critically acclaimed film scores in cinematic history in a career that has spanned over six decades. Williams has won 25 Grammy Awards, seven British Academy Film Awards, five Academy Awards, and four Golden Globe Awards. With 52 Academy Award nominations, he is the second most-nominated individual, after Walt Disney. In 2005, the American Film Institute selected Williams's score to 1977's Star Wars as the greatest film score of all time. The Library of Congress also entered the Star Wars soundtrack into the National Recording Registry for being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant".

Williams has composed for many critically acclaimed and popular movies, including the Star Wars saga, Jaws, Close Encounters of the Third Kind, Superman, E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, Home Alone, the Indiana Jones films, the first two Jurassic Park films, Schindler's List, and the first three Harry Potter films.  Williams has also composed numerous classical concertos and other works for orchestral ensembles and solo instruments. He served as the Boston Pops' principal conductor from 1980 to 1993 and is its laureate conductor. He has been associated with director Steven Spielberg since 1974, composing music for all but five of his feature films. Other works by Williams include theme music for the 1984 Summer Olympic Games, NBC Sunday Night Football, "The Mission" theme used by NBC News and Seven News in Australia, the television series Lost in Space and Land of the Giants, and the incidental music for the first season of Gilligan's Island.  Williams was inducted into the Hollywood Bowl's Hall of Fame in 2000, and received a Kennedy Center Honor in 2004 and the AFI Life Achievement Award in 2016. He has composed the score for eight of the top 25 highest-grossing films at the U.S. box office (adjusted for inflation). His work has influenced other film composers and contemporary classical and popular music

So today, floating through misty colored memories, I chose John Williams’ " Home Alone Theme" as my, remember the good, shine the bright light, savor the sweetness, song for a, remember when, once again, in a dream, Tuesday.

Amy Grant - "Breath of Heaven"

As every Holiday Season, this month I’ll be choosing only Holiday Songs from as many holidays as I can.

Everybody loves Amy Grant, especially at Christmastime. Widely thought of as “The Queen of Christian Pop” and one of the only mainstream crossovers from religious music, Amy Grant has a signature sound and a classic style. I’ve had her album in heavy rotation every Christmas since I was a teen.

This song in particular is meaningful to me as it is simply a call for help. It’s Mary, a woman in desperate need, calling out to something beyond herself for help. It’s a plea to God, to the universe, to help her shoulder the burden she has been asked to carry, and it’s inspiring. It is inspiring because it is simply so human. It is something we’ve all done, or been through, and it’s so easy to relate. With a little help and a little grace, we can all make it through these tough moments.

I had the IMMENSE pleasure to get up and sing an impromptu version of this song this past weekend at our holiday piano night. It was truly wonderful, and as always, I was blown away by the talent of my friends!

So today, gathering grace like fruits for the harvest, I choose Amy Grant’s iconic “Breath of Heaven (Mary’s Song)” as my, hold me together, be forever near me, hear my prayer, song for a, look to the heavens, believe in yourself, you have been given a gift that only for this moment feels like a burden, Monday.

I’m also going to give you my favorite cover version of this song. Jessica Simpson does a really gorgeous cover where her breathy, almost whispered, tone brings to life the urgency of the song. Almost better than the original, but certainly just at great.

Rosemary Clooney, Bing Cosby, Danny Kaye, & Vera Ellen - "Snow"

As every Holiday Season, this month I’ll be choosing only Holiday Songs from as many holidays as I can.

There’s nothing like this holiday classic to get you in the mood for the holidays.

We have a singalong coming up tomorrow night and I always imagine the group breaking out into song like the stars of this movie. With voices like velvet and silk Rosemary and Bing wrap up the season for us with a big beautiful bow.

Do yourself a favor and watch this at some point this month.

So today, with a happy little swirl, I choose Rosemary Clooney, Bing Cosby, Danny Kaye, & Vera Ellen’s "Snow" from “White Christmas” as my, get into the spirit, believe it into being, create it for others, song for a, whatever the weather, weather it together, for now and forever, Friday.

As Ethan says, with him (and his last name) it’s always a “White” Christmas.

Leslie Odom Jr. - "Ma’oz Tzur (feat. Nicolette Robinson)"

As every Holiday Season, this month I’ll be choosing only Holiday Songs from as many holidays as I can.

What a truly beautiful version of this Hanukkah classic. It touches my heart to see people reaching across the gap to support each others beautiful traditions. Leslie performs this song so gently and beautifully that it truly does remind you of the miracle of the lights of Hanukkah.

Listen and remember the miracles in your life.

So today, miracles abounding, I choose Leslie Odom Jr.’s version of "Ma’oz Tzur (feat. Nicolette Robinson)" as my, with light and fire, with dreams and passion, with the hope of tomorrow, song for a, brighten the corner where you are, lift thy voice, shimmer like the stars, Thursday.