A Holst Christmas

Noël 2 is an exciting collection of Advent, Christmas and Epiphany music for mixed voice choirs, which follows on from the highly acclaimed Noël! Volume 1 (Catalogue No. NOV310800). The contents range from the Renaissance to the present: from Byrd and Sweelinck, via Bach, familiar settings of traditional and lesser known carols through the ages to Howells and Leighton, and work by today's composers including Richard Rodney Bennett, Eric Whitacre, John Tavener Tarik O'Regan and Richard Allain. Mixed voice choirs of all levels will find here new arrangements of favourite carols as well as stimulating works for the Christmas season, from the easy to learn to the more challenging and unconventional. Selected and edited by David Hill, Choral Advisor to Novello, Chief Conductor of the BBC singers, Musical Director of The Bach Choir, Chief Conductor of The Southern Sinfonia and Music Director of Leeds Philharmonic Society. He was awarded an honorary Doctorate by the University of Southampton in 2002 in recognition of his Services to Music. 'Noël was a welcome addition to the Christmas list for decent standard choirs - Noël 2 adds even more to the repertoire in a handy volume... The main enticements are some fantastic new arrangements of old favourites, a number of works previously only available in single sheets (Whitacre's Lux Arumque among others) and some fantastic new surprises. Adrian Peacock's Venite, Gaudete is a wonderfully original and vibrant setting, Richard Rodney Bennet's I Wonder as I Wander is both reflective and effective, and there are plenty more. Some of the pieces here will challenge your choir, but there's a vast amount to get the Christmas inspiration flowing. ' - Jonathan Wikeley, Music Teacher November 2009 '?an outstanding resource for Advent, Christmas and Epiphany ' Andrew Stewart, Choir and amp - Organ November/December 2010 Noel! 2 Interview With David Hill by Musicroom / Choeur SATB Et Orgue (Ou Piano)

Holst's choral fantasy on old carols Christmas Day arranged for mixed voice choir SATB with organ accompaniment.

Holst's arrangement of Personent Hodie for unison voices and Piano accompaniment with standard and Tonic Sol-Fa notation.

Fantasy on Old Carols-Good Christian Men Rejoice ? God Rest You Merry Gentlemen ? Come Ye Lofty Come ? The First Nowell / La musique de Noël de Gustav Holst est touchante par sa fraîcheur et sa chaleur. Composée en 1910 cette fantaisie basée sur quatre noëls anglais anciens témoigne de la créativité et de l?imagination du compositeur. Originellement pour Chœur mixte et Orchestre ou Orgue Robert van Beringen en a réalisé cet arrangement pour Brass Band et Chœur (ad lib.).

Fantasy on Old Carols-Good Christian Men Rejoice ? God Rest You Merry Gentlemen ? Come Ye Lofty Come ? The First Nowell / La musique de Noël de Gustav Holst est touchante par sa fraîcheur et sa chaleur. Composée en 1910 cette fantaisie basée sur quatre noëls anglais anciens témoigne de la créativité et de l?imagination du compositeur. Originellement pour Chœur mixte et Orchestre ou Orgue Robert van Beringen en a réalisé cet arrangement pour Orchestre d?Harmonie et Chœur (ad lib.).

In his use of authentic Englsh folksongs Gnostic texts and Vedic hymns one can discern Holst’s search for a compositional Voice beyond the constraints of the European canon in the early 1900’s. In A Dream of Christmas Holstset a medieval carol in Dorian mode modulating to D for the words of Christ manifesting his fascination medieval English music. Harmonies in the refrain are all in thirds and the piece is well within the abilities of amateursingers or Choruses.Gustav Holst has earned a place among the most revered of late 19th and early 20th century composers and is best known for his enduring Orchestral suite The Planets.

Words by William Morris (1834-1896); Traditional French Carol; Final Verse and Chorus Based on a Harmonization by Gustav HolstA truly dynamic interpretation of a wonderful French carol! “Masters in This Hall ”in its original form is festive and full of life. This arrangement from Mark Hayes is even more exciting! Unexpected harmonies and a fabulous accompaniment make this lively Christmas carol a must for concert or festival. Foradvanced SATB choirs school or church use. Also available iPrint orchestration and StudioTrax CD.

Christina Rossetti wrote the words to this famous Christmas carol in 1872 in response to a request from the magazine Scribner's Monthly for a Christmas poem. They were set to music by Gustav Holst (1874-1934) for inclusion in the first edition (1906) of The English Hymnal edited by his life-long friend Ralph Vaughan Williams. Philip Sparke has carefully arranged the beautiful melody into this delightful version for fanfare band. A must for any Christmas concert.