Who could have known that only after being posted for a few weeks, it has had 2.1K views. I guess that qualifies for singing "O Holy Night" this Christmas. It makes me happy. Merry Christmas to all!
Yesterday I was supposed to sing "O Holy Night" at church. The problem was that I developed a case of shingles in my right eye. That is something I don't wish on my worst enemy!!!! Not only is the pain terrible, but I looked frightening due to the swelling and little red pox on the right side of my face. Nevertheless, people are so caring. I did not want anyone to see me, but they came bringing food and gifts and good wishes anyway. Over the years I have sung "O Holy Night" in many different arrangements from solos, to duets, to SATB versions with small groups, church and community choirs, and even grand choirs like the Tabernacle Choir and Orchestra at Temple Square. I feel so bad that I won't be singing "O Holy Night" this year. Maybe I will need to be content with the posting of a recording I did several years ago of the Mark Hayes arrangement for solo voice and piano. Who could have known that only after being posted for a few weeks, it has had 2.1K views. I guess that qualifies for singing "O Holy Night" this Christmas. It makes me happy. Merry Christmas to all!
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One of the things I admired my Aunt Janie Thompson for is how she helped us as an extended family stay close. And how did she do that? She kept creating opportunities for us to sing together! We did so many shows! We did family shows for almost any occasion, but a lot of shows were at Christmastime. My mother had her children singing practically from birth, as well. And I have tried to keep that tradition going, too. Though, I admit that now that they are all grown up and have families of their own, they aren't my minions to do my bidding at the drop of a hat any more. But there were times when we would sing together and have some good bonding time in the process. For several years while we lived n Maryland, our family joined with two other families and a few other singing friends to do Christmas shows. I finally got smart and insisted that we do some recordings of our efforts. We worked hard and sounded pretty good, if I do say so myself. In those days (the recordings are from 2005 and 2006), the Bailey's, Bullock's, and Perry's had 17 kids and several grandchildren and spouses, plus 5 good friends. So, our group featured about 25 singers, one fabulous dancer, some awesome violinists, and other instrumentalists. I have posted a few of the songs from our shows on YouTube (Festival of Lights Playlist) as a gift for Christmas. Enjoy! Last night I went to a choir rehearsal. We have two concerts upcoming for the Christmas season, one on Dec. 2 and another on Dec. 23rd. We are preparing Christmas music --- a few carols and many of the choruses from Handel's Messiah oratorio. Because my body is still reacting to the change in seasons as well as going back to standard time, I found it hard to talk myself into going to rehearsal last evening. It was dark and all I wanted to do was snuggle up in a blanket. We began rehearsal with some carols that must feature soloists and orchestra, because all we got to sing on our music were "ooh's and ah's." We didn't even have the full score to follow along. It wasn't very fun. But then we started singing some of the Messiah choruses. That changed everything. I love singing all of the melismas (quick notes). It's kind of like singing scales for warm-ups, but much, much better. At first our director made us sing these passages slowly so she could check if we could sing them accurately. She finally let us sing at a proper (fast) tempo. Ah! That was better! And I finally felt alive! In fact I had trouble settling down later to sleep. I have really missed doing shows for Christmas. I especially miss the rehearsals for weeks in preparation. It made me think of being in Maryland and doing concerts for the Festival of Lights concert series at the Washington D.C. LDS Temple Visitors Center. We performed as a family with two other families and a few singing friends. We didn't always get recordings, but in 2006 we did. Here are the Bailey, Bullock, and Perry Families (with our 17 children, at that time) and a few friends. Here is one of our favorite numbers. "Caroling, Caroling" a medley of Alfred Burt Carols arranged by Mark Hayes. I directed with my daughter Kathryn Rock on piano. Wayne Perry and I were the soloists. We had so much fun. I confess. Sometimes I like to watch movies and TV shows just for the scenery. I get a bit nostalgic when I "re-visit" (through the movie) places I have lived or vacationed to over the years. The professional videographers do a much better job of capturing the beauty of those places than I ever could. The colorful leaves of autumn in New England, the green "tunnels" of the trees over the back roads in Maryland and Pennsylvania, the grandeur of snow-capped mountains in Utah, the awesome scenery of the National Parks, the energy of the big cities, watching the waves at the beaches in Monterey, LA or in the Caribbean, and even capturing moments of watching the tiny lizards in the deep South....these are all beautiful places and ones that bring back vivid memories of living near or getting to visit them in my life. Last night, I watched a Christmas movie that was set in Heidelberg, Germany. Since I took a trip there last May, I was especially interested to see if I recognized any of the places they included in the movie. And YES! Seeing the cobblestone streets, the half-timbered buildings, the impressive cathedrals, visiting the Christmas shops, the lights along the river, the stone bridge, and especially the ruins of the castle all took me back to being there! Another movie I watched recently was set in a mythical town in Ohio called Dickens. I can only guess that this Christmas movie was created because Charles Dickens actually visited parts of Ohio in 1842. Many quaint old inns have plaques on their walls saying "Charles Dickens slept here..." And they highly decorate their inns for every season, especially for Christmas. Some even have created "Dickens Christmas Villages" and have special events reminiscent of the Victorian Christmases described in the books and basically created by Charles Dickens. My family lived in Ohio during the 1970s. We loved living in our forest of sugar maples and being able to go sight-seeing to so many historic places. My mother used to pick me up from school sometimes and say, "Where should we go today?" One place we loved to visit was The Golden Lamb Inn and restaurant in Lebanon, Ohio. It has a wall of plaques listing the famous people who visited there like Mark Twain, many U.S Presidents, and of course, Charles Dickens. During our time living in Ohio, the movie Scrooge was released. This movie, particularly the music of Leslie Bricusse and arranged by Ian Fraser, was a huge musical influence on me. We have to watch that movie at least once every Christmas. When I started learning about arranging in my music classes in college, I wrote an a cappella version of "A Christmas Carol." Too bad I never had the foresight to get a video of any of the groups that performed this. Oh well...I did get this recording!
So, I think I just finished writing and illustrating and formatting the book I've been preparing to give out this Christmas. Correction, almost finished. My editors (sisters, daughters, and granddaughters) have been giving me lists of things to fix. The last of these is to agree on which cover (of the four I prepared) to finalize. I think I know which one they'll pick, so I'm pretty sure I'm done! After working for so long on this book about Aunt Janie, it's got me in the mood to think about all of the magical Christmas shows she produced. More importantly, the magical Christmas shows she allowed me to have part in from such a young age. I have vivid memories of rehearsing with Janie when I was just eye-level with the keyboard at her piano. She put me in a kid's trio with older kids Tanya and Cory when I was still just 4 years old! We were learning "Jingle Bells," "The Christmas Alphabet," and "Don't Wait 'til the Night Before Christmas to Be Good" in 3-part harmony. (Posted are my takes on Janie's arrangements which she never actually notated.) I wish I had more pictures of our little trio performing. My mother and aunt were always busy at the piano. If any pictures were taken, it was through the graciousness of other folks. (My memories are in color, thankfully.) Janie told me that I had the highest voice, so I needed to learn the highest part. "You just watch my little finger and sing the notes it plays." I didn't know that singing a harmony part was considered too hard for little children. I was just obedient and followed the notes her little finger played.
Tonight I am going with my sister Bonnie to a Tabernacle Choir party in the Ballroom of the Grand America Hotel in Salt Lake City. I'm pretty sure that some of Janie's Christmas shows were performed there. Our little kid's trio was used as a "fill-in" act on Christmas shows when she couldn't get enough of her BYU students to do an entire show. (College kids actually like to go home during the holidays, go figure.) That was all right by me. I loved the excitement of performing at Christmas!!!!! By the way, here's what I think we'll agree for the back cover of Janie's book. Already the stores are setting out Christmas items...decorations, gift ideas, clothes, candy. Playing non-stop Christmas music in the store will be next. All weeks before Halloween or even Thanksgiving.
This is not such a new phenomenon for musicians, though. We tend to write, arrange, and start practicing Christmas music in July! Since I am not currently directing a choir, I decided to do a different project in this Christmas "pre-season." I've been working on adding more offerings on my YouTube Channel. A few years ago, I recorded seven of The Mark Hayes Vocal Collection: 10 Christmas Songs. He is a prolific master arranger, composer, clinician, choral conductor, and pianist. The score folio came with a CD of the master himself playing the piano accompaniments. There is nothing quite like singing with the composer himself indicating the exact interpretations. When I first sang through these pieces with the CD accompaniment, I marveled how "in sync" I felt. It was as though he knew how to anticipate the length of time I needed to extend the phrases and even the time I needed to take a breath. It made me feel like he was following me. For vocal students and performers, these pieces are excellent repertoire. Perhaps these recordings will help the student learn them easier. For my other followers, I created visuals to help tell the stories of these beautiful Christmas songs. (Click on the images and it will take you to YouTube to play the videos.) Can't help but notice all of the "Christmas in July" action going on right now. From Hallmark movies to special sales, for good or bad, Christmas is the biggest holiday to be commercialized. For musicians, though, they have to look ahead to get prepared for shows and concerts six months out. For schools, music teachers HAVE to prepare in July for the end of Fall semester concerts. It's just the way things work. I have been noticing people asking for help and guidance to find new music and programming ideas for their shows. This doesn't surprise me. THERE IS SIMPLY SO MUCH STUFF OUT THERE to sift through. Teachers and Choral Directors have quite a job trying to come up with fresh material year after year. Some schools don't have a dedicated music program, so the classroom teachers must provide their own numbers for the "Christmas Sing" Concert at the school. Most teachers just do the same songs each year. Now as a grandma of many, I cringe at going to hear the same songs year after year, concert after concert. Maybe try a five year rotation... There is something to be said for having a few numbers on the program that are TRADITIONAL. But, if just for the sake of the long-suffering audience, it is so refreshing to have most of the program different from year to year. That said, you don't want all of the songs to be completely brand new, either. Singing at least a few old favorites helps the audience appreciate the show better. Having a THEME to help unify the show is ultimately the best programming device the teacher or director has. Many times through the years, finding a good THEME for a concert has been the best and yet hardest part of my job as a director. I have spent days, perhaps months, scouring music stores for just the right theme songs for my shows. (That was in the olden days.) Now, having access to online sources and many chat groups for advice, the job seems so much easier.
Some of the Christmas Holiday show THEMES (songs) I have used are "Holiday Harmony," "Be a Santa," "Walking in a Winter Wonderland," "Caroling, Caroling," and "Under the Christmas Tree." Another theme song that became a fun show is "The Greatest Christmas Card in the Whole Wide World." These last two theme songs I actually wrote because I ran out of time searching. Fortunately at my schools, we did not have to worry about being "politically correct." We just sang a wide variety of songs --- from winter fun songs to Nativity songs, even a few Jewish songs. All were appreciated. Singing Handel's "Messiah" oratorio is quite the Christmas tradition in our family. We have tried to attend local "Messiah-Sing" concerts together whenever we can. And sometimes we just get together as a family and sing our favorite selections. (Our problem is that we don't like to skip any of the solos or choruses, so we end up doing most every number even though it takes several hours!) This year, I got to attend a "Messiah-Sing" concert with my grandson Noah Cornwall's SOGO Conservatory orchestra playing for us. We went to the Washington Center for the Performing Arts in downtown Olympia for this concert. The Student Orchestras of Greater Olympia (SOGO) advanced group accompanied the concert. My grandson plays the Viola and was pretty much hidden from my view during the concert. But, he was there right behind the conductor! My brother Ben Lee (Tenor), my daughter Carolyn (Alto), her daughter Heidi (still deciding), and I (Soprano) sat together in the Tenor section. That was rather fun holding our own parts in amongst the Tenor singers. (We wanted to sit together!) It wasn't too hard for me because I basically had those few choruses they did memorized. But poor Heidi, age 13, had barely been exposed to singing "Messiah" before. So she was basically sight-singing or just listening trying to follow along. (No easy feat!) We had a great time singing together six of the most famous choruses and listening to four of the most popular solos. The concert was just one hour long. The kids in the orchestra did a very good job. I was impressed by how SOGO operates. They practice and learn as a group, of course, but they also have experienced "Artists in Residence" interspersed to help them during rehearsals as well as the performance. (In the picture you can just see a few of the older players.) What a great experience for the students. I was so glad I was able to attend! When I was growing up, I was privileged to watch how my aunt Janie Thompson operated. She put together many Christmas shows and concerts. Even her Ward's Christmas parties were something extra special. I was very young when I started to understand that when Janie did a show it was magical! I figured this out when I went to other events that were far inferior. Even as young as I was, I knew something was missing. My mother took 4-year-old me aside and tried to explain that not everyone had the talent to do what Janie did. So, what made Janie's shows so extraordinary? Well, the first thing was the music. She could take regular people from her ward and train them to do awesome performances. She would size up their natural abilities and then create special arrangements to magnify their gifts. For example, she might give them a song but then change the key to suit their vocal ranges and, of course, dress up the accompaniment so that they would sound awesome. But her training wouldn't stop there. She worked with them so that they could show personality and sparkle as they performed. She even taught them choreography and helped them with costumes so they looked coordinated and sharp. Janie's job was to produce shows and touring groups for BYU. Through the 1950s-1970s, Janie Thompson organized shows that performed in places all over the world. Her most famous groups were the Young Ambassadors and the Lamanite Generation (now know as the Living Legends). I have a memory from when I was still four years old. Janie asked me and two other kids to sing in her Christmas shows. We started working on our training in September. Tanya and Cory were older than me, so Janie figured I would sing the melody and they would sing trio harmony. But really what happened was I learned harmony parts, too. We would go to her office on BYU campus and stand around her piano. She pulled me up close to the keyboard. It was right at my eye level. She told me to watch her little finger and sing those notes. So I did. One of the first songs we learned was "The Christmas Alphabet." This was a Christmas song made popular by the McGuire Sisters in the 1940s. We sang while the BYU Program Bureau students danced behind us. From then on, we got to be on many of Janie's shows, mostly the holiday shows when fewer of her BYU students were available. We sang for anybody, anywhere, anytime. I remember singing in fancy private homes, schools, community halls, office buildings, church gymnasiums, theaters, basketball courts, football stadiums, and even the elegant Ballroom at the old Hotel Utah. Those were magical times. No wonder, I have a hard time watching shows that don't have anything even close to the Janie touch! "The Christmas Alphabet" is such a fun song. Here are two arrangements, one for 2-Part Children's Chorus and the other for Children and SATB. We sang it on a Family Show in the Festival of Lights at the Temple Visitor's Center in Washington D.C. in 2006.
We had our first big snowfall here the other day. It was beautiful, but caused a lot of problems. The leaves on the trees had not dropped yet, so the heavy wet snow weighted them down and many limbs broke. We also lost power for a few hours. However, there was enough snow on the ground that the little grandkids wanted to go out to build a snow fairy. (That's a snowman, but for girls, according to my granddaughter.) There must be something about the first snowfall that sets people, rather musicians, into full-on Christmas mode. I am always surprised by how sharply one of my arrangement's sales picks up just after Halloween. "Jingle Bells" for 2-Part Children's Chorus. Years ago I needed a special song for my elementary school chorus. The children were showing signs of wanting a bit of a challenge. They said that they were ready to do HARMONY songs. (Okay, maybe those were my own children who were pressing hard for this.) At any rate, I asked them if they would like a song where the altos actually sing a "Bass" part. That got the boy's ears to perk up. "Yeah! We can do it!" So I went home and wrote out a version of "Jingle Bells" that incorporated bits and pieces of an arrangement my Aunt Janie Thompson had us sing as a family for many years. But I put my own spin on it and created a "Bass" part for the altos (in this case --- the Boys of my Chorus). Often, getting boys to sing when they are of a certain age is challenging. They tend to think that their voices are changing WHEN THEY ARE NOT. One of the sneaky ways I have found is to help them feel special and foundational to the success of the chorus. I explain that having the Bass under the Melody is like building the foundation to a house. The building cannot stand without a firm foundation. My 4th and 5th grade boys got that analogy and did a great job learning their most important part. (They didn't have to know that they were still singing in the Treble Clef.) This "Jingle Bells" version can be performed in a way that looks more impressive than it really is. What was even more impressive was that I conducted as I played the piano standing up. (The accompaniment includes some very easy flourishes that "wow" the audience.) The kids get to sing a "canon" on the verses that I explain is very challenging. So when they get it, they are quite pleased with themselves. And then they get to sing HARMONY on the chorus with the boys singing the "bass" line. Oooh.....so coooool! I have had kids, now grown-ups, tell me that they still remember the "bass" part they learned in Elementary school and sing it every time they go out caroling. Now that's longevity! "Jingle Bells" 2-Part Children YouTube Video |
AuthorMy name is Betsy Lee Bailey. I enjoy singing and writing all kinds of music. I have performed and directed or taught music all of my life. This blog is dedicated to all of the people who have been encouraging me to write about my experiences. |