A Victorian Noel: European Carols Arranged for Dulcimer, Harp, Piano and Strings

Cheryl Ann Fulton (Artist), Shira Kammen (Artist), Tom Constanten (Artist), Robin Petrie (Artist) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (June 1, 1993)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Gourd Music
• ASIN: B000005C2X
• Also Available in: Audio Cassette  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #171,767 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

About the Artist

Robin Petrie has been performing popular and seldom-heard dulcimer music since 1980. She is heard regularly on National Public Radio and has appeared in Europe and across North America with her husband/partner Danny Carnahan. The two have recorded five albums: Cut and Run, Two for the Road, Continental Drift, Journeys of the Heart and No Regrets. Robin's sparkling "Indie" award-winning style can be heard on other Gourd albums including A Victorian Christmas, Oktober County, Dream of the Manatee, Simple Gifts, The World Turned Upside Down, Tree of Life, Autumn in the Valley and Wondrous Love. The instrument shown on A Victorian Noël is Robin's restored 1875 Mackenzie Piano Harp, patented and built in Minneapolis along the lines of a small spinet. About 30 Mackenzie piano harps are known to survive today.

Product Description

An enchanting companion album to A Victorian Christmas... Oliver Cromwell and the Puritans officially outlawed all festivals, including the ancient Yuletide celebrations so beloved by the people. In rediscovering the ancient feast of Christmas, the Victorians searched throughout Europe to find old carols, transporting them across borders and language barriers. Here is a collection of well-known melodies from Provence: Un Flambeau, Jeanette, Isabella; Burgandy: Patapan; Germany: O, Tannenbaum; France: Wherefore This Great Joy (Angels We Have Heard on High)—along with lesser-known gems from Poland, Alsace, Sicily, Finland, Holland, Austria, Catalonia, Denmark, Galicia and the Basque country.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Sound Of Christmas, September 19, 2002

By 

Ken Roberts "social historian" (Michigan United States) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: A Victorian Noel: European Carols Arranged for Dulcimer, Harp, Piano and Strings (Audio CD)

In most cases, a follow up CD (or movie, book, whatever) is rarely as good as its predecessor. This is not to be for Robin Petrie's remarkable second collection of Victorian Christmas music. It is every bit as good as her first collection, with a wonderful selection of known and not so well known Christmas carols. You'll recognize 'O Tannenbaum,' 'I Saw Three Ships,' and 'In Dulci Jubilo.' But you may not know 'Masters In This Hall,' 'Lovely Is The Dark Blue Sky,' or 'Fum Fum Fum,' all beautiful tunes played in Robin's exquisitely crafted traditional style. Ms. Petrie is, in my opinion, the finest hammered dulcimer instrumentalist, and if you've never heard her music, this CD (as well as her first - "A Victorian Christmas") will win you over. It just SOUNDS like Christmas! Soft lights or candles flickering, perhaps you just watched your favorite version of 'A Christmas Carol,' or you're just about to decorate your (hopefully real) tree. This is the music you want. Amazon gives you an opportunity to give a listen to 'A Victorian Noel.' Take 'em up on it but, be forewarned, have your credit card ready. You're gonna want this!

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Victorian Joy, August 18, 2002

By 

Karen A. Decoster (Detroit, MI) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: A Victorian Noel: European Carols Arranged for Dulcimer, Harp, Piano and Strings (Audio CD)

Robin Petrie has brought us two glorious Victorian Christmas albums, and _A Victorian Noel_ is the better of the two. The sweet sounds of these old-fashioned, instrumental carols is so reminiscent of times of antiquity. This is what real Christmas music sounds like. Download the MP3 of _Infant Holy/I Saw Three Ships/The Builders_ off the Amazon site, and listen to it in its entirety.

Then go ahead and order both Petrie CDs.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One of the best Christmas CDs ever, January 23, 2002

By 

Stephen D. Schaper (Rochester, MN USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: A Victorian Noel: European Carols Arranged for Dulcimer, Harp, Piano and Strings (Audio CD)

Whether you listen to it carefully or let it play barely-noticed in the background, this CD is one of the best of Christmas Carols I've ever heard.

Robin Petrie has amazing command of the hammered dulcimer or "piano harp" as her Victorian model was called.

The arrangements are quite nice, the occasional strings fit in just right and even the piano doesn't sound bad (and I don't like the sound of that instrument)

If you like traditional music, or even just prefer Mannheim Steamroller to the latest pop artists attempt at a "Christmas Album" you will love this CD.