25 Christmas Favorites

Jule Styne (Composer), Katherine K. Davis (Composer), Christmas Traditional (Composer), Mykola Dmytrovich Leontovych (Composer), Steve E. Nelson (Composer), Felix [1] Mendelssohn (Composer), Mel Torme (Composer), John Francis Wade (Composer), Henry Walford Davies (Composer), Ray / Livingston, Jay Evans (Composer), James R. Murray (Composer), George Frederick Handel (Composer), Franz Xaver Gruber (Composer), Pyotr Il'yich Tchaikovsky (Composer), Leroy Anderson (Composer), Felix Bernard (Composer), 101 Strings Orchestra (Orchestra) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Orchestra: 101 Strings Orchestra
• Composer: Jule Styne, Katherine K. Davis, Christmas Traditional, Mykola Dmytrovich Leontovych, Steve E. Nelson, et al.
• Audio CD (August 19, 2003)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Madacy Records
• ASIN: B000025Z1T
• Also Available in: Audio CD
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #329,753 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

1. Let It Snow, Let It Snow, Let It Snow

2. The Little Drummer Boy (Carol of the Drum), carol

3. Les anges dans nos campagnes (French), carol (AKA Angels We Have Heard On High)

4. God Rest You Merry, Gentlemen (English)

5. Carol of the Bells

6. Frosty the Snowman

7. Deck the Halls (Welsh)

8. Work(s): Yuletide Greetings Medley: Good King Wenceslas; O Come All Ye Faithful (Wade)

9. Hark! the Herald Angels Sing (adapted by W. H. Cummings from Mendelssohn's Festgesang for the Gutenberg Festival)

10. The Christmas Song (Chestnuts Roasting On An Open Fire)

11. O Come, All Ye Faithful (Adeste fidelis)

12. O Little Town of Bethlehem, carol

13. The First Nowell (English)

14. Silver Bells (for the film The Lemon Drop Kid)

15. Away in a Manger

16. Good Christian Men, Rejoice (a.k.a. 'All Christians Now Rejoice')

17. Angels From the Realms Of Glory

18. Joy to the World (theme by Handel)

19. Stille Nacht, heilige Nacht (Silent Night)

20. Nutcracker, ballet, Op. 71: Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy

See all 25 tracks on this disc

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars My Favorite Instrumental Christmas Album, November 4, 2005

By 

Gemma "bookworm" (Alberta, Canada) - See all my reviews

This review is from: 25 Christmas Favorites (Audio CD)

This is an often overlooked gem of Christmas music. I love Christmas music so much that I have a hard time waiting until December to start playing it - but I have to have mercy on my husband (he likes it, but within reason, unlike me, the Christmas nut!).

This is an album that it almost constantly in my CD player come December. I had a very hard time finding an album where the carols are played normally. If you're one of those people who, like me, hate when people mess around with the words, tempo, beat, even the tune of your favorite traditional songs, then you'll love this album, because it does none of those things. There's nothing more annoying that singing along to a tune, only to have it go off out of whack into something that no one has ever heard before. This one doesn't do that.

I only had a few minor complaints about this disc. One was that track number 16 was improperly labelled. It says that the tune is "Bell Carol (Good Christian Men Rejoice)" It's not! The actual music is "Here Comes Santa Claus".

The only other track I had a problem with was #20, "Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy". The person playing it sounds like he's wailing on that clavichord. I keep thinking that he's about to break the instrument, he's hitting it so hard. It's supposed to be played delicately, not like an elephant is jumping up and down on the instrument. This is the only track that I skip over.

Other than that, though, this is an album worth getting. There is no choir here, just pure orchestra, if that's what you're looking for. If you're sick of paying tons of money for a sub-standard recording that messes with the music instead of playing it the way it's meant to be played, then get this one instead. This orchestra plays the songs properly.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great holiday music, September 20, 2007

By 

Jeannie K. "xmas fanatic" (Burlington, KY USA) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: 25 Christmas Favorites (Audio CD)

Like the other review, I Love this CD, but I have to say that I like all of the selections!! If you need good background music at a party or, like myself always have music on at home, this is Excellent for that. It is all instumental, but not all quiet music. I drive my husband crazy as well with Christmas music all year round, and I can actually get away with playing this one at any time. I own lots of Christmas CD's and this one is one of my favorites because of the selection and the length of the CD! (it has to be well over an hour of music)

1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Good orchestration of classic Christmas music., November 25, 2002

By 

ramirez98 (Earth, Milky Way) - See all my reviews

This review is from: 25 Christmas Favorites (Audio CD)

Though this isn't a five-star CD by any means, it still offers decent quality orchestration of the good ole classic Christmas tunes. All the pieces are played by the 101 String Orchestra, and though I've not heard anything from them before, they do a reasonable job with the holiday classics.