What If Mozart Wrote "White Christmas"

Northern Lights Orchestra (Artist, Performer), Ross Bagdasarian (Composer), Irving Berlin (Composer), Felix Bernard (Composer), John Frederick Coots (Composer), Katherine K. Davis (Composer), Jerry Herman (Composer), Walter Kent (Composer), Hugh / Blane (Composer), Ralph Martin (Composer), Steve E. Nelson (Composer), Noel Regney (Composer), Jule Styne (Composer), Mel Torme (Composer), Petri Juutilainen (Conductor), Northern Lights Symphony Orchestra (Orchestra) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Performer: Northern Lights Orchestra
• Orchestra: Northern Lights Symphony Orchestra
• Conductor: Petri Juutilainen
• Composer: Ross Bagdasarian, Irving Berlin, Felix Bernard, John Frederick Coots, Katherine K. Davis, et al.
• Audio CD (October 13, 2009)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Perfect Sound
• ASIN: B002MT3D7Y
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (19 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #10,410 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)
  • #81 in Music > Miscellaneous > Holiday > Opera & Vocal

Editorial Reviews

From the magical land of the Midnight Sun and Father Christmas comes The Northern Lights Orchestra playing the most popular Christmas songs as if Mozart, Beethoven, Debussy or Brahms had composed them for string orchestra. Conducted by the Finnish conductor Petri Juutilanen, this joyful recording captures the season's spirit in the way that no other recording has.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Improvement on the original, December 24, 2009

By 

N. Colson (Auburn, WA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: What If Mozart Wrote "White Christmas" (Audio CD)

I found the following helpful review at [...] regarding the original production of these arrangements with a string quartet and the more recent orchestral recording, which had apparently been the original vision:

Your all-time favorite Christmas Songs as if composed by the most famous of classical composers!
From the magical land of the Midnight Sun and Father Christmas comes The Northern Lights Orchestra playing the most popular Christmas songs as if Mozart, Beethoven, Debussy or Brahms had composed them for string orchestra. Conducted by the Finnish conductor Petri Juutilanen, this joyful recording captures the season's spirit.

"This started in 1986," said Warren Schatz, the man behind the project, "when I produced the `What if Mozart Wrote Have yourself a Merry Little Christmas' record. It was released in 25 countries and stayed in the catalog for over 23 years. Originally I envisioned it as an orchestral project but had to settle for a string quartet due to budget constrictions. After 23 years I can finally realize this project the way that I conceived it!"

14 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Excellent music, but please be aware..., November 28, 2009

By 

Eric M. Prescott "disciple man" (Cape Cod, MA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: What If Mozart Wrote "White Christmas" (Audio CD)

I was excited to see what I thought was a new "What If (insert composer here) Wrote" Christmas cd. While the music is excellent, purchasers should be aware that a fair number of the selections sound like they were directly lifted from a 1986 RCA/Victor release by the Hampton String Quartet called "What If Mozart Wrote 'Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas'". I find this a bit disappointing. The supposed artist of this "new" cd is the Northern Lights Orchestra; I'm not sure if they redid the music, but it sure sounds exactly like the HSQ recording I already own. Perhaps the HSQ changed its name? Whatever the case may be, the music is great; I could only rate it 2 stars, though, based on the fact that it's not all new material.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A must have Christmas record, December 5, 2009

By 

Masako (Greenwich, CT.) - See all my reviews

This review is from: What If Mozart Wrote "White Christmas" (Audio CD)

I have owned and loved the String Quartet recordings for many years and think that this recording blows the quartet stuff out of the water. I've bought copies for stocking stuffers this year. This sounds like this is the way it was meant to be. It's so grand and glorious. This is a must have record. Going to play it during Christmas Dinner.