Customer Reviews

Let It Snow

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

Chanticleer is an a capella ensemble that has gained popularity in the mid 1990's due to it's beautiful and at times haunting sound and a renewed public interest in early classical music. Their previous releases at Christmas have been well received by loyal fans with good reason--they are fine recordings of beautiful music. My guess is that their most recent collection LET IT SNOW may not be as well received by Chanticleer's fans as their earlier recordings.

To be fair, their musicianship is consistent on this recording as it is in their past ventures. Some of the tracks are worth hearing: traditional favorites such as "Ave Maria" "Silent Night" "O Come All Ye Faithful and "O Holy Night." The foray into more contemporary Christmas songs such as "Let it Snow," "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" and "The Christmas Song" is fine even though some Chanticleer purists may disagree. For me the arrangements of medleys, one of "God Rest ye Merry, Gentlemen" and Feliz Navidad" the other being one called "Holiday Cheer" are troublesome. The first medley not only pairs two songs that do not belong together, it drags. The second sounds a bit too gimmicky, at least for my taste. I'm not saying that groups cannot have fun with Christmas music. Many Christmas songs are supposed to be nothing but fun, but the fun has to work, and in the case of the second medley, it just doesn't work.

Now don't get me wrong. It's not a horrible recording and if you take out about ten minutes of this CD, you'd have a nearly perfect recording. This collection does not deserve a home with Elmo and Patsy's Christmas collection that gave us the immortal "Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer" and "Percy the Puny Poinsettia" or the Wilson Phillips HEY SANTA. Most of the tracks are performed well; it's just not in the same category as Chanticleer's other holiday offerings.

I think that this CD is a wonderful addition to Chanticleer's already existing holiday albums. It's a fun, artistic, and beautiful set of literature. Different from their albums in the past, and it is a nice change to a lighter side without sacrificing artistry. It is a must buy for the holiday season! My only problem is that the bonus tracks that you can download off of iTunes are not included on the CD, and those are some of my favorites!

This is a very nice christmas album. Not a vocally driven album by any means, however chanticleer has done some very nice work here. I would play it in the background for a nice christmas party but it isn't a sit down and listen album or even a distraction. When I put it in the stereo and sat to listen I found myself paying attention to things other than the music. I've never had a probelm absorbing myself with other Chanticleer titles. That being said, I own every chanticleer recording and i am proud to have this in my collection. Yet, it's no "Christmas with Chanticleer and Dawn Upshaw" or
even a "Sing We Christmas". Quality of performance is spectatcular as always and sound quality is great.

Beautifully done, mostly very slow, peaceful interpretations of the various songs -- speeds up a bit toward the end. The characterization elsewhere as background music is very apt -- something to play during a relaxed Christmas dinner -- or when relaxing in front of a warm fire on a cold day. Ave Maria is roughly half orchestral and half vocal. Beautiful voices and harmony -- the tenors are truly amazing -- I thought I could hit some high notes.

Never disappointed with Chanticleer. Incredible mix of secular & sacred classics. Just right for the long, cold winter days' listening.

Chanticleer have departed from their strictly unaccompanied style, not without consequences. As a devoted Chanticleer fan, I can take a lot of punishment, but there may be other devoted fans out there who are going to be upset.

The problem with this recording is that it will appeal only to the fringe elements of Chanticleer's following, who happen to also like eclectic arrangements of Christmas musical fare.

There are some lovely tracks; in fact, the tracks are all very nice. O Holy Night, in particular, is lovely. I can't why they rearranged it to give up the gentle triplet rhythm. That rocking pulse is an important part of the conception of the carol, in my opinion. It also imparts a gentleness that offsets the slightly pompous and stilted lyrics. That tension is very French, and an attempt to Americanize this song is doomed to failure.

Like others, I was disappointed in this latest Christmas CD from Chanticleer. Frankly, I really do not care at all for any of the accompanied numbers, with the exception of "Ave Maria" - probably because it has the most traditional, least "jazzy" sound to it (I'm not a big fan of their "Lost in the Stars" CD either). Still, it is Chanticleer, and "It Came Upon a Midnight Clear" is absolutely beautiful - the one track I can listen to over and over.

I love Chanticleer for their traditional sound.
That means a cappella.
That means harmonies that give you chills down your spine.
That means arrangements that reveal something new on every listen.
It's what you will find on "Christmas with Chanticleer (Featuring Dawn Upshaw)" and "Sing We Christmas".

This, however, is awful.

Imagine the biggest choir nerd you can remember from your high school trying to sing "Satisfaction".
Or Pavarotti singing "Born to Be Wild".
It just doesn't work.

And the "Chanticleer Orchestra" (whatever that is) is horrendous.
I could hardly get through the whole thing.

I gave it two stars b/c it's still better than Josh Groban. But it's close.

Get the two albums mentioned above; this one is a waste of time and money.

I bought this CD for the song "Ding Dong Merrily on High" and I was not disappointed. Chanticleer delivered in their usual professional manner, like the King's Singers. However, I was disappointed in some of the arrangements, too jazzy and too discordant for my liking. But it was worth having the CD for the Ding Dong Merrily and a couple of other songs.

I like Chanticleer's music and the harmonies their voices produce. This particular Christmas CD was not very exciting and I listened to it only once and put it away. I actually wished I didn't buy it. Next time, I'll be sure to listen to their songs first to be sure I like them and not simply assume that everything Chanticleer does will be pleasing.