Customer Reviews

Scandinavian Christmas

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This is by far my favorite Christmas CD of all time.
I stumbled upon it while looking for a recording of a Scandinavian Christmas song that my junior high band was playing. This was the only link I got to Scandinavian Christmas songs so I bought it.
The best purchase I've ever made! It's different than anything you've ever heard. You won't hear any familiar holiday tunes unless you happen to be familiar with the music of Scandinavia. The chord structures of the music are incredibly different but they really work with the melodies. This choir is amazing too! They sing so well in tune that you can hear the overtones and their diction is so clear that I feel like I could really speak Norweigen, Swedish, and Danish if I tried.
My only complaint with the CD is the organ music in between the choral arrangements but that's a personal issue - I just don't like the sound of the organ.

I am not a huge fan of church type music in general but having recently discovered some Scandinavian ancestry, was drawn to add to my knowledge and appreciation of those antecedents. Christmas is a very personal and important holiday to me and I was thrilled to hear this recording done in the original language. In my mind's eye I was transported to an earlier time when Christmas was a very important time for all in the community. Values were different and the music imparts this in a very special way. Enjoyment of the music is not dependent on understanding the language either. The music alone is special and the voices of the vocalists only adds to it. I would highly recommend this recording as part of anyone's appreciation of the Scandinavian people and culture.

Most of the songs are good renditions of popular Jul songs, but I find the organ instrumentals depressing and too church-like. If those songs were happier and joyous sounding, I would have rated this a 5.