Christmas Night (album)

Christmas Night (subtitled Carols of the Nativity) is a Christmas-themed album by The Cambridge Singers conducted by John Rutter. Most songs are sung a capella, on others the choir is accompanied by The City of London Sinfonia. It was first released in 1987 on Rutter’s label Collegium Records.

The album

The CD version of “Christmas Night” contains 22 Christmas carols spanning more than six centuries. Most of these have become well known thanks to the Christmas Eve Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols at King's College in Cambridge. Some arrangements for the carols on the album were written by conductors or arrangers who have worked at King's College over the years.

Most carols on the album were written centuries ago, although several are relatively young. For instance, “Candlelight carol” was written in 1984 by Rutter. Others are a mix of old and new: “There is a flower" was written by fifteenth century monk John Audely, with new music by John Rutter.

Critical response

Christmas

Christmas or Christmas Day (Old English: Crīstesmæsse, meaning "Christ's Mass") is an annual festival commemorating the birth of Jesus Christ, observed most commonly on December 25 as a religious and cultural celebration among billions of people around the world. A feast central to the Christian liturgical year, it is prepared for by the season of Advent or the Nativity Fast and initiates the season of Christmastide, which historically in the West lasts twelve days and culminates on Twelfth Night; in some traditions, Christmastide includes an Octave. Christmas Day is a public holiday in many of the world's nations, is celebrated culturally by a large number of non-Christian people, and is an integral part of the holiday season, while some Christian groups reject the celebration. In several countries, celebrating Christmas Eve on December 24 has the main focus rather than December 25, with gift-giving and sharing a traditional meal with the family.

Christmas Eve

Christmas Eve refers to the evening or entire day preceding Christmas Day, a widely celebrated festival commemorating the birth of Jesus of Nazareth. Christmas Day is observed around the world, and Christmas Eve is widely observed as a full or partial holiday in anticipation of Christmas Day. Together, both days are considered one of the most culturally significant celebrations in Christendom and Western society.

Christmas celebrations in the denominations of Western Christianity have long begun on the night of the 24th, due in part to the Christian liturgical day starting at sunset, a practice inherited from Jewish tradition and based on the story of Creation in the Book of Genesis: "And there was evening, and there was morning – the first day." Many churches still ring their church bells and hold prayers in the evening; for example, the Nordic Lutheran churches. Since tradition holds that Jesus was born at night (based in Luke 2:6-8), Midnight Mass is celebrated on Christmas Eve, traditionally at midnight, in commemoration of his birth. The idea of Jesus being born at night is reflected in the fact that Christmas Eve is referred to as Heilige Nacht (Holy Night) in German, Nochebuena (the Good Night) in Spanish and similarly in other expressions of Christmas spirituality, such as the song "Silent Night, Holy Night".

K. Michelle

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Kimberly Michelle Pate (born March 4, 1982) better known by her stage name K. Michelle, is an American singer, songwriter, television personality, guitarist and pianist. In 2009, She was noted when she signed a deal with Jive Records and released the R&B charting single "Fakin' It" featuring Missy Elliott. She later went on to release three follow-up R&B charting singles: "Fallin'", "I Just Can't Do This", and "How Many Times" before leaving Jive Records. In 2012, K. Michelle garnered further attention by appearing in the VH1 reality series Love & Hip Hop: Atlanta.

Following her appearance on the show, she landed a contract deal with Atlantic Records. She released her long-delayed debut studio album Rebellious Soul on August 13, 2013. The album saw commercial success, debuting at number 2 on the US Billboard 200 and number 1 on the US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart. K. Michelle's The Rebellious Soul Musical directed by Golden Globe winner Idris Elba debuted on VH1 on August 19, 2014. In 2014 Michelle released her second studio album Anybody Wanna Buy a Heart? which debuted at number six on the Billboard 200.

Christmas Canon

"The Christmas Canon" is a Christmas song by the Trans-Siberian Orchestra (TSO) from their 1998 album The Christmas Attic.

The song is set to the tune of Johann Pachelbel's Canon in D Major with new lyrics added. The style is a departure from TSO's usual rock arrangements, instead being performed in the style of a children's choir with light accompaniment from piano and strings. The group's rock version is entitled "Christmas Canon Rock", which debuted on their 2004 album The Lost Christmas Eve.

As of December 2010, the song was the fourth best-selling holiday song in digital history with 590,000 downloads.

See also

External links