In dulci jubilo (in sweet joy)

Let us our homage shew;

Our heart’s joy reclineth

In praesepio, (in a manger)

And like a bright star shineth

Matris in gremio; (in you mother’s lap)

Alpha es et O. (beginning and end)

O Jesu parvule! (O infant Jesus)

My heart is sore for Thee!

Hear me, I beseech Thee,

O Puer optime! (O best of boys)

My prayers let it reach Thee,

O Princeps gloria! (O prince of Glory)

Trahe me post Te! (Draw me to heaven)

O Patris caritas! (O love of the Father)

O Nati lenitas! (O mercy of the Son)

Deeply were we stained

Per nostra crimina; (Through our sins)

But Thou hast for us gained

Coelorum gaudia: (The joys of heaven)

O that we were there!

Ubisunt gaudia, (Where are joys)

Where, If that they be not there!

There are angels singing

Nova cantica; (New songs!)

There the bells are ringing

In Regis curia: (In the King’s courts)

O that we were there!

The First Nowell, the angel did say,

Was to certain poor shepherds in fields as they lay,

In fields where they lay keeping their sheep

On a cold winter’s night that was so deep.

Refrain:

Nowell, Nowell, Nowell, Nowell,

Born is the King of Isreal.

They looked up, and saw a star.

Shining in the East beyond them far;

And to the earth it gave great light,

And so it continued both day and night. 

Refrain

Then enter’d in those Wise men three,

Full rev’rently on bended knee;

And offer’d there in His presence,

Their gold and myrrh and frankincense. 

Refrain

Veni, Veni Emmanuel!

O come, O come, the “I Am” that is with us

Erocras!

I will come!

Captivum solve Israel,

Break the bond of the captive people

Qui gemit in exsilio,

Who mourn in exile

Privatus Dei Filio.

Derived of the Incarnation of the Father.

Refrain:

Gaude, Gaude, Emmanuel

Rejoice! Rejoice” the Great “I Am”

Nascetur pro te Israel.

Will be born for you

Veni, Veni, Rex Gentium,

O Come, gatherer of all nations,

Veni, Redemptor omnium,

Come to make all whole

Ut salvas tuos famulus,

To save your servants

Peccati sibi conscios.

From their separateness.

Quis veniet?

Who will come?

Erocras

I will come

Veni, Veni O Oriens,

O come thou light of life

Solare nos adveniens,

To shine on us by your coming

Noctis depelle nebulas,

Dispel the clouds of night

Dirasque mortis tenebras.

Drive away the shadows of death.

Text by Mother Thekla

Today the Virgin comes to the cave

to give birth to the Word eternal: 

Rejoice, O World! 

With the angels and the Shepherds

give glory to the Child! Alleluia!

Mary, my wife, O Mary, my wife!

What do I see?

I took you blameless before the Lord

From the priests of the Temple

What do I see? 

Rejoice, O World...

Joseph, the Bridegroom, O Joseph, the Bridegroom!

Do not fear.

God in his mercy has come down to earth,

He takes flesh in my womb

For all the world to see.

Rejoice, O World...

Mary, my Bride, O Mary my Bride, 

What do I see? 

You, a virgin giving birth. 

Strange mystery!

Rejoice, O World...

Joseph, the Bridegroom, O Joseph, the Bridegroom!

Do not fear. 

God in his mercy has come down to earth.

He takes flesh in my womb

For all the world to see. 

Rejoice, O World! , etc.

Warned by the Angel we believe

that Mary gives birth inexplicable

To the infant, Christ, our God.

Rejoice, O World...

Text by Dorothy L. Sayers

The first king was very young,

O balow, balow la lay,

With doleful ballads on his tongue,

O balow, balow la lay,

He came bearing a branch of myrrh

Than which no gall is bitterer,

O balow, balow la lay,

Gifts for a baby King, O.

The second king was a man in prime,

O balow, balow la lay,

The solemn priest of a solemn time,

O balow, balow la lay,

With eyes downcast and reverent feet

He brought his incense sad and sweet,

O balow, balow la lay,

Gifts for a baby King, O.

The third king was very old,

O balow, balow la lay,

Both his hands were full of gold,

O balow, balow la lay,

Many a gaud and glittering toy,

Baubles brave for a baby boy,

O balow, balow la lay,

Gifts for a baby King, O.

The holly and the ivy

When they are full grown

Of all the trees in the wood

The holly bears the crown

O the rising of the sun

The running of the deer

The playing of the merry organ

Sweet singing in the choir

The holly wears a blossom

As white as lily flower

And Mary bore sweet Jesus Christ

To be our sweet Saviour.

The rising of the sun…

The holly bears a berry

As red as any blood

And Mary bore sweet Jesus Christ

To do poor sinners good.

The rising of the sun…

The holly bears a prickle

As sharp as any thorn

And Mary bore sweet Jesus Christ

To be our sweet Saviour.

The rising of the sun…

The holly bears a bark

As bitter as any gall

And Mary bore sweet Jesus Christ

On Christmas Day in the morn.

The rising of the sun…

The holly and the ivy

When they are full grown

Of all the trees in the wood

The holly bears the crown

See dat Babe in de lowly manguh,

He gon’ take all my sin away.

He gon’ reign wit my God in glory 

one of dese days, one of dese days.

He was born of de Virgin Mary

To bring peace to a weary lan’.

He come down from de god in Heaben,

Oh, behol’ de Son of Man.

Was no room in de inn, dey tol’ Him,

And dey sent my Lawd away.

He was wrapped in swaddling’ clothes

An’ He was born in a manguh hay.

Oh, come, behol’de Baby Jesus

See dat Baby, 

Oh behol’ de newborn King.

See dat Babe, see my Lawd,

See de King.

Shepherds, called by angels, 

called by love

No place for them but a stable

My Lord has come

Sages, searching for stars

Searching for love in heaven

No place for them but a stable

My Lord has come

His love will hold me, 

His love will cherish me,

Love will cradle me.

Lead me to see him,

Sages and shepherds and angels;

No place for me but a stable

My Lord had come.

Text by Jennifer Thorpe

Come and dance upon the silvered winter ground

All agleam with firelight from the open door,

And so brimmed with snow it gives up not a sound,

Just as if we moved inside a world of pearl.

This is the merry dance of Christmas night

This is the beat and swell of winter’s heart,

This is the message born upon the air:

Come dance with us, let joy be ev’rywhere.

Come and join the circle round the soaring pine,

Sap as dark as honey shining on the bows,

Crowned with candles, brilliant with holly twined,

She is queen of Christmas, this forest knows.

This is the merry dance of Christmas night…

Come and hold my hand beneath the velvet night

When the feast is over and the quiet comes,

As the bonfire forges a world of light,

Halo of embrace, from flickers spun.

This is the merry dance of Christmas night...

Come and sing the songs of season and of cheer

Golden and resounding though the frost is nigh,

Christmas is the finest note of the year,

Let us hear it rising in the hopeful sky,

This is the merry dance of Christmas night...

Come and dance

Everybody dance!

Based on themes by Anatoli Liadov, this bold fanfare provides a profound statement. Stately melodies by this well-known Russian composer are used to provide an uplifting and majestic setting for this stunning work.

Anatoly Liadov (11 May 1855, St. Petersburg, Russia – 28 August 1914) was a Russian composer, teacher and conductor. He was born in St. Petersburg into a family of eminent Russian musicians. He was taught informally by his conductor step-father Konstantin Lyadov from 1860 to 1868, and then in 1870 entered the St. Petersburg Conservatory to study piano and violin.

He soon gave up instrumental study to concentrate on counterpoint and fugue, although he remained a fine pianist. His natural musical talent was highly thought of by, among others, Modest Mussorgsky, and during the 1870s he became associated with the group of composers known as The Mighty Handful. He entered the composition classes of Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov, but was expelled for absenteeism in 1876. In 1878 he was readmitted to these classes to help him complete his graduation composition.

After his graduation, he began work as a music theory teacher at this conservatory. His pupils included important composers such as Sergei Prokofiev. Liadov also carried out research on the folk music of Russia, and published a number of editions with arrangements of this music. He composed few large-scale works, writing mainly piano music; miniature compositions that later found their way into arrangements and transcriptions for symphony orchestra or concert band.

At a young age, Liadov was strongly influenced by the Russian national movement, in the sphere of Balakirev and company. Liadov felt connected to their ideas through his affinity with Russian melody. The oriental exoticism in his music was also notable. Through his brilliant orchestration and daring harmonies he further developed aspects previously explored by Borodin and Rimsky-Korsakov.

Liadov died in Polinovka, near Novgorod, and was buried in the Alexander Nevsky Convent in St Petersburg.

Howard Hanson (28 October 1896, Wahoo, Nebraska – 26 February 1981, Rochester, New York) was an American composer, conductor, educator, music theorist, and ardent champion of American classical music.

In his youth, he studied music with his mother. Later, he studied at Luther College in Wahoo, receiving a diploma in 1911, then at the Institute of Musical Art in New York City, where he studied with the composer and music theorist Percy Goetschius in 1914. Afterward, he attended Northwestern University, where he studied composition with church music expert Peter Lutkin and Arne Oldberg in Chicago. Throughout his education, Hanson studied piano, cello and trombone. Hanson received his BA degree in music from Northwestern University in 1916, where he began his teaching career as a teacher's assistant.

That same year, Hanson got his first full-time position as a music theory and composition teacher at the College of the Pacific in California, and only three years later, the college appointed him Dean of the Conservatory of Fine Arts in 1919. In 1920 Hanson composed The California Forest Play, his earliest work to receive national attention. Hanson also wrote a number of orchestral and chamber works during his years in California, including Concerto da Camera, Symphonic Legend, Symphonic Rhapsody, various solo piano works, such as Two Yuletide Pieces, and the Scandinavian Suite, which celebrated his Lutheran and Scandinavian heritage.

Hanson was the first recipient (along with Leo Sowerby) of the American Academy's Rome Prize, awarded by the American Academy in Rome, in 1921, for both The California Forest Play and his symphonic poem Before the Dawn. Thanks to the award, Hanson lived in Italy for three years. During his time in Italy, Hanson wrote a Quartet in One Movement, Lux aeterna, The Lament for Beowulf (orchestration Bernhard Kaun), and his Symphony No. 1, "Nordic", the premiere of which he conducted with the Augusteo Orchestra on May 30, 1923. It has been incorrectly stated that Hanson studied composition and/or orchestration with Ottorino Respighi, who studied orchestration with Nikolay Rimsky-Korsakov. Hanson's unpublished autobiography refutes the statement, attributed to Ruth Watanabe, that he had studied with Respighi.

Upon returning from Rome, Hanson's conducting career took off, making his premiere conducting the New York Symphony Orchestra in his tone poem North and West. In Rochester, New York in 1924, he conducted his Symphony No. 1, and this brought him to the attention of George Eastman, inventor of the Kodak camera and roll film, who chose Hanson to be director of the Eastman School of Music. Hanson held that position for forty years, turning the institution into one of the most prestigious music schools in America. He accomplished this by improving the curriculum, bringing in better teachers, and refining the school's orchestras. Also, he balanced the school's faculty between American and European teachers, even when this meant passing up Béla Bartók. Hanson offered a position to Bartok teaching composition at Eastman, a position that Bartok declined as Bartok did not believe that one could teach composition. Bartok placed Hanson in a difficult position as he wished to teach piano at Eastman, but Eastman had a full staff of piano instructors at the time.

In 1925, Hanson established the American Composers Orchestral Concerts. Later, he founded the Eastman-Rochester Symphony Orchestra, which consisted of first chair players from the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra and selected students from the Eastman School, and then The Festivals of American Music followed. Hanson made many recordings with the Eastman-Rochester Symphony Orchestra, not only his own works, but also those of other American composers such as John Alden Carpenter, Charles Tomlinson Griffes, John Knowles Paine, Walter Piston, William Grant Still, and other, lesser-known, composers. Hanson estimated that over 2000 works by over 500 American composers were premiered during his tenure at Eastman.

Hanson was elected as a member of the National Institute of Arts and Letters in 1935, President of the Music Teachers' National Association from 1929 to 1930, and President of the National Association of Schools of Music from 1935 to 1939. In 1946, Hanson was awarded the George Foster Peabody Award "for outstanding entertainment programming" for a series he presented on the Rochester, New York radio station WHAM in 1945.

Dies Natalis, for band, is in the form of an introduction, chorale, five variations, and finale, based on the ancient and beautiful Lutheran Christmas chorale-tune, celebrating the birth of Christ entitled O Morning Star, How Fair and Bright. Of the piece, Howard Hanson writes:

"I used to sing it as a boy in the Swedish Lutheran Church of Wahoo, Nebraska. This chorale has, without doubt, been the greatest single musical influence in my life as a composer. Traces of the chorale appear in my early orchestra work, Lux Aeterna, and in sections of my opera, Merry Mount. The chorale form has also influenced my Chorale and Alleluia for band and my fourth and fifth symphonies for orchestra."

Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky (7 May 1840, Votinsk, Russia – 6 November 1893, St. Petersburg, Russia) was a Russian composer.

Although musically precocious, Tchaikovsky was educated for a career as a civil servant. When an opportunity for a musical education arose, he entered the nascent Saint Petersburg Conservatory, from where he graduated in 1865. The formal Western-oriented teaching he received there set him apart from composers of the contemporary nationalist movement embodied by other Russian composers, with whom his professional relationship was mixed. Tchaikovsky's training set him on a path to reconcile what he had learned with the native musical practices to which he had been exposed from childhood. From this reconciliation, he forged a personal, independent but unmistakably Russian style, a task that did not prove easy. The principles of Russian nationalist artists were fundamentally at odds with those supporting European traditions, and this caused personal antipathies that dented Tchaikovsky's self-confidence.

Tchaikovsky’s works included symphonies, concertos, operas, ballets, chamber music, and a choral setting of The Russian Orthodox Divine Liturgy. Some of these are among the most popular concert and theatrical music in the classical repertoire. He was the first Russian composer whose music made a lasting impression internationally, which he bolstered with appearances as a guest conductor later in his career in Europe and the United States. One of these appearances was at the inaugural concert of Carnegie Hall in New York City in 1891. Tchaikovsky was honored in 1884 by Emperor Alexander III, and awarded a lifetime pension in the late 1880s.

Despite his many popular successes, Tchaikovsky's life was punctuated by personal crises and depression. Contributory factors included his leaving his mother for boarding school, his mother's early death and the collapse of the one enduring relationship of his adult life, his 13-year association with the wealthy widow Nadezhda von Meck.

"The Waltz of Flowers" from The Nutcracker is perhaps Tchaikovsky’s most famous waltz of all. This waltz comes from the second act of the ballet. In the traditional ballet productions, the stage is filled the stage with the full caset, including children carrying garlands. An effusion of melody and impetuous grace reveals Tchaikovsky in his element.

The Day After Christmas

Another magnificent, wonderful Christmas serenely has come to a close

It’s time now to savor the joys of the season, it’s time for a welcome repose

For that’s how the glorious day after Christmas on some other planet is spent;

But everyone here knows the day after Christmas is really a time to lament:

Oh, I ate to much I spent too much I really over did it, 

I should have known that I’d be overcome with Christmas spirit, 

I should have guessed I’d get no rest when Christmas Day was through 

‘cause the day after Christmas I still have too much to do!

Take down the tree, pack up the sixteen thousand decorations

Throw out the trash (but I don’t mean the visiting relations)

Wrap up the food enough for twelve more weeks of turkey dishes,

And tell the kids that leftovers are always quite delicious!

(Always?) Yes, always!     (Really always?) Well, almost always!

Those leftovers are really almost quite delicious!

But there’s so much more to do: the after Christmas sales are on, I have to get there early

Ignore that fact it’s crowded and the clerk’s a little surly,

Return the clothes that weren’t my style or could have fit me better;

And while you’re at it, please take back your ugly Christmas sweater!

Oh, I ate to much I spent too much I really over did it, 

I should have known that I’d be overcome with Christmas spirit, 

I should have guessed I’d get no rest when Christmas Day was through 

‘cause the day after Christmas I still have too much to do!

Replace the worn-out batteries in Brute, the robot poodle,

Repair the broken toys, they sure don’t make them like they used to!

But one thing will outlast these Christmas toys all put together

The payments on my credit cards go on and on forever!

(Forever?)  Yes, forever!    (Really, forever?) That’s right, forever!

The payments on those credit cards go on and on forever!

But there’s much to do: The kids are out of school and active every waking minute; 

If there’s a prize for running ‘round my kids will surely win it!

The mall, the movies, playdates! It’s a frenzy of vacation!

I’m totally exhausted from providing transportation!

Oh, I ate to much I spent too much I really over did it, 

I should have known that I’d be overcome with Christmas spirit, 

I should have guessed I’d get no rest when Christmas Day was through 

‘cause the day after Christmas I still have too much to do!

On the day after Christmas, I still have too much to do!

It’s busier than ever, no relaxing whatsoever

Not for me though I believe that even Santa Claus gets a reprieve!

I need a break for heaven’s sake, but who can take a holiday?

I’ve got to get ready for New Year’s Eve!

Gary Fry is an Emmy-winning composer, arranger, producer, conductor, and music educator. He has crafted music for recordings, films, commercials, publication, and live performance. Significant credits include his work as arranger/composer for the Chicago Symphony Orchestra's Welcome, Yule! holiday concerts for nearly 20 years, his current position as arranger/composer for the Charlotte Symphony Orchestra's Holiday Pops programs, artistic consultant to the Dallas Symphony Orchestra for their annual Christmas Celebration concerts, and over 100 commissions for Christmas and holiday music from those orchestras and others from around the nation. In addition, many universities and prominent churches have commissioned new Christmas compositions and arrangements from Gary. His album of Christmas music, entitled ​The Song in Our Hearts, was released in 2023 and can be heard on the various streaming platforms, or ordered on CD from this website.

Long one of the nation's foremost commercial music producers, Gary has written and produced over 2500 nationally broadcast radio and television commercials for companies such as McDonald's, Sears, United Airlines, Kellogg's, the U.S. Air Force, and hundreds of other advertisers. He won an Emmy Award in 2006 for his original commercial music for WBBM-TV (Chicago). Recently, Gary orchestrated and conducted music for the PBS nature special To the Ends of the Earth.

This unique combination of symphonic skills and commercial experience has made him an in-demand music writer for organizations looking for the highest-quality compositions and arrangements that also appeal to a broad audience. His deep background in the recording studio and expertise in maximizing digital recording techniques has proven valuable to clients for CD production. The Rock Hill (SC) Symphony commissioned an opening overture for the 2024 BMX World Championships and now plan to record the work, which will also open their 2024-2025 concert season.

Gary also has a passion for working with young people, particularly in choral music. Children's choirs under his direction have performed at the White House, the United Nations, the Kennedy Center in Washington, and Carnegie Hall. He remains active as a clinician, lecturer, and conductor for ensembles in all levels of education from elementary schools to universities. 

The Provision Theater in Chicago often utilizes Gary as a composer of music for the stage. He has written music for eight of their theatrical productions, including the Jeff-nominated Spoon River Anthology, was music director for the critically acclaimed Old Wicked Songs, and most recently provided music for Nicodemus​.

This humorous piece, a patter-song in the style of Gilbert and Sullivan, bemoans that the busy preparations for Christmas are followed by the busy aftermath of Christmas. It was originally programmed to follow pieces about the night before Christmas and Christmas Day.

Catie Johnson is currently a junior at St. Ambrose University pursuing a Music Major and a minor in Marketing. This past summer, Catie sang in the Opera Quad Cities production of “La Bohème.” She was selected to perform in the E.C. Schirmer Composers Session at the 2023 CRNATS conference. She also teaches at Keynotes Vocal Studio in Davenport, inspiring the next generation of vocalists. 

Leroy Anderson was an American composer born in 1908. Anderson was born to Swedish immigrants. He attended Harvard University where he received a B.A. in Music in 1929, and a M.A. in Music in 1930. He studied toward a Ph.D. in German and Scandinavian languages through 1935 although he never completed his thesis. His composition teachers included George Enescu and Walter Piston. While in school he taught music to undergraduate students at Radcliffe College and was director of the Harvard University Band.

After hearing Anderson's arrangements for the Harvard Band, Arthur Fiedler asked him to make an arrangement of Harvard songs for the Boston Pops Orchestra. This eventually led to Fiedler hiring Anderson as an arranger for the Boston Pops and to the BPO performing original works by Anderson. Leroy Anderson served in the United States Army during World War II as an interpreter and translator for the Counter Intelligence Corps and rose to the position of chief of the Scandinavian Department of Military Intelligence at the Pentagon.

After the war, Anderson moved to Connecticut with his family where he composed some of his most successful works, including Sleigh Ride (1948). His The Syncopated Clock (1945) was used as the theme show for The Late Show for 25 years and his composition Blue Tango sold over a million copies in 1952. As his compositions grew in popularity, Anderson was engaged as guest conductor of many orchestras across the United States.

Anderson wrote primarily for full orchestra. Soon after completing each orchestral composition, he would score many of his pieces for concert band and, in some cases, for piano and small ensembles. From 1938 to 1950, Anderson's compositions received their first performance with either Arthur Fiedler or Leroy Anderson conducting the Boston Pops. From 1950 to late 1962 Anderson's compositions received their first performances during recording sessions for Decca Records, conducted by Anderson.

A Christmas Festival is a concert overture built upon traditional Christmas songs. Originally recorded by the Boston Pops, it is the Christmas medley that sets the standard for all others. Anderson has encompassed the joy, celebration, and solemnity of Christmas in his arrangements of Joy To The World, Deck the Halls, God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen, Good King Wenceslas, Hark! The Herald Angels Sing, The First Noel, Silent Night, Jingle Bells, and O Come, All Ye Faithful.