Customer Reviews

Christmas Celebration

5 star:		(181)
4 star:		(40)
3 star:		(9)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

Thanks to Public Broadcasting, the musical quintet CELTIC WOMAN has quite a fan base. It's easy to see why. They are pleasing performers who perform beautiful music together. They have their own sound which has a broad appeal. This makes the group natural candidates for a Christmas collection that will be loved not just by fans but anyone who loves holiday music. This collection does not disappoint.

Most of the tracks in this collection are traditional Christmas titles both religious to the secular. The temptation of many performers is to just sing some Christmas songs and hope for the best. CELTIC WOMAN does the opposite. There is a true ensemble approach to the music and we never get a sense of competition or jealousy. The carols are performed with reverence and the contemporary songs are pleasant. The authentic Celtic music and selections from the British Isles are perhaps the strongest in the collection. There is a distinct Celtic sound where appropriate including the beautiful violin (fiddle) playing of group member Mairead Nesbitt, but numbers where a Celtic flair would be out of place are performed traditionally with wonderful arrangements. The selections are varied, so it should be enjoyed by just about anyone who loves holiday music.

My guess is that fans of CELTIC WOMAN will not need a review to convince them to purchase this CD. For those who may not be familiar with this ensemble, if you're looking for a varied Christmas CD with beautiful music and wonderful arrangements that will both entertain and sooth, then CELTIC WOMAN: A CHRISTMAS CELEBRATION fits the bill. I'm sure it will be a popular holiday release this year and in many years to come.

I have over 40 Christmas CDs and around a dozen Christmas cassettes (remember those?), and every year, I buy a few more to add to my collection.

I was in the store debating on which Christmas CD to get, and I kept going back to Celtic Woman: A Christmas Celebration. I saw a TV advertisement for it, but I wasn't all that familiar with this group of women.

I finally decided to buy it, and I'm very glad I did! We've been in the throes of the "holiday season" since before Thanksgiving (my son and I are such kids!), and I find myself reaching for this Christmas CD more than any other! In fact, I just got done listening to it as I was typing up some reviews.

It's a very calming CD, but not saccharine or forced. The singing is at times lilting and playful, but not obnoxiously operatic in the least. There's a subtle Irish flavor to the music, but it's NOT like listening to a Riverdance soundtrack.

Carol of the Bells is one of my absolute favorite Christmas songs and, to tell you the truth, seeing that it was on this CD cinched my purchase. Lovely soft violin and ethereal choral singing that swell to a rousing (but, again, not obnoxious) culmination--beautiful! This is testament to GREAT sound mixing, not just wonderful performances by the ladies. (I use to run/mix sound for recording, so I have an hear for that kind of thing. Some mixes have one instrument too loud and insistent or perhaps the voices are overpowering--not this CD. Everything is a perfect mix.) Other songs, like Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas, are vocally driven, with beautiful harmonies that don't sound sappy or artificial like some CD's out there.

I can't see how anyone would be disappointed with this lovely CD. I enjoy hearing traditional favorites, as well as holiday songs unfamiliar to me. I play it while reading, relaxing, cooking, writing--well, you get the picture!

This is by far one of the most enchanting and magical Christmas CDs I've listened to in a long time! If you were impressed with Celtic Woman, I promise that this CD will not disappoint! Every track is most worthy of its own private review. The vocals are stunning, Mairead's violin performances are magical, and the accompanying instruments are so beautiful that I guarantee that you will be carried away to another time and place.

The CD itself is filled with traditional carols (O Holy Night, Silent Night, Ding Dong Merrily on High, Carol of the Bells, O Come All Ye Faithful), contemporary carols (White Christmas, The Christmas Song, Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas, The Little Drummer Boy, Let it Snow) and a couple of carols I was not familiar with (Christmas Pipes, Panis Angelicus, Don Oiche Ud I Mbeithil and the Wexford Carol).

Christmas Pipes is a fun, more energetic song that brings to mind gatherings with friends, kissing under the mistletoe and sharing hot cocoa. Panis Angelicus is a gentle, soothing song, while Don Oiche Ud I Mbeithil (That Night in Bethlehem) is so tender and contemplative that it brought tears to my eyes. The Wexford Carol brings to mind carolers in Victorian England.

Both the traditional carols and the more contemporary carols are so beautifully done that I can't imagine that anyone could ever do a more beautiful version.

I would have to say I love the entire CD, and find that I want to listen to the whole thing over and over rather than skipping from song to song. I would highly recommend "Celtic Woman A Christmas Celebration" to anyone wishing to make this season more magical and inspired for themselves and their loved ones.

Critics of Celtic Woman will point out that it really isn't Celtic music--it's just more pop/classical music that doesn't have any real musical value. Well, I happen to be a big Celtic Woman fan since I heard them the first time, but let's assume every bit of that is true. This album is still terrific, and here's why...

This is Christmas music--nothing more and nothing less. There is no pretention of Celtic music per se, just gorgeous voices singing beautiful carols that we all love. I dare you to find a vocal Christmas album that sounds this beautiful and crisp. That's not to say I don't enjoy listening to Bing Crosby or Perry Como, but the soothing quality of this music is hard to top. The only track that tackles the pop culture of Christmas music is the bonus track "Let it Snow!" saved for the very end.

You can knock the group if you want, but if you don't like this album it's because you don't like Christmas music!

Orla, Chloe, Meav, Lisa, and Mairead are wonderful performers! I have loved their performances ever since I first saw them sing on television in 2004. Their Christmas album is very good. My favorites are "O Holy Night", "Silent Night"(I've always been VERY impressed by Meav's vocal range), "Christmas Pipes"(this one is my VERY favorite), "Carol Of The Bells", "O Come All Ye Faithful", and "Let It Snow!".The other songs are also great, although the chorus overpowers the women in "Ding Dong Merrily On High", and "Don Oiche Ud I Mbeithil" needs a translation. Orla does a wonderful job with "Away In A Manger", although I like the other version of that song better. They do a good job with "The Little Drummer Boy", although I prefer it to be sung slowly and simply. All in all, this is a wonderful album, and anyone who likes Celtic Woman should buy this.

I'll have to be honest I am a big CW fan. I have all their CDs and the CW DVD so I'm biased in their favor. I expected a great Christmas CD. What I got was perfection!!! The sweetest Christmas music anyone can expect to hear this side od the Pearly Gates. Their voices blend together in a beautiful harmony. Every sone is a winner. If want to enjoy Christmas music this holiday season purchase trhis CD. You will not be disappointed!!!

I rushed out to buy this album on it's release date and I was not disappointed in the purchase. Every song is beautiful and their voices blend so well. This is an excellent album and anyone who loves Christmas music will LOVE this CD. Everything from the song selection, the arrangements, and the voices is perfection. Hauntingly beautiful.

The voices of the Celtic Women singers are exquisite, but the arrangements on this record don't do them justice. There are several that shouldn't be missed. Tight harmonies on Merry Little Christmas, haunting That Night in Bethlehem, gorgeous Wexford Carol are the best of the lot. Guess I expected more Celtic tunes. It is quite shocking, and unpleasantly so, to have the blaring jazz horns blast at the start of Let It Snow after the quiet Wexford Carol and it ruined this CD for me.

Loved this CD! I have their first album and it's beautiful (of course), but they add their own signature touch to these class Christmas songs. I highly recommend this CD for your holiday music collection - you WON'T be dissapointed! :-)

I have heard the original "Celtic Woman" and seen one of the TV shows, and I would have to say that the CD mostly lived up to my expectations. The voices are lovely and the production/music values are high. My objection to the CD is its mismatch of songs and voices. Many of the songs on the original Celtic Woman had a slow, sad, mourning tone, as perhaps is fitting for the sad songs of Ireland. However, these excellent, soft voices, which capture mourning and sadness so well, seem mismatched with upbeat, American Christmas songs. "Let It Snow" is perhaps the most jarring, with its big-band introduction. The first two songs, "O Holy Night" and "Away in a Manger," are the best, especially as one hears the soft Irish lilt on "the little Lord Jesus." However, I strongly recommend and prefer the original "Celtic Woman" CD.