Thursday, December 21, 2017 by Mary O'Connor | holiday

A few years ago, we went to see Tchaikovsky's Nutcracker...

From http://www.nycballet.com/Ballets/N/George-Balanchine-s-The-Nutcracker.aspx

During the holiday period, the entire Company is immersed in activities surrounding George Balanchine's The Nutcracker™. All 90 dancers, 62 musicians, 32 stagehands and two casts of 50 young students each from the School of American Ballet join forces to make each performance as magical as possible. Children of all ages from New York City and the nation fill the David H. Koch Theater to be captivated by the lure of Tschaikovsky's music, Balanchine's choreography, Karinska's sumptuous costumes, and Rouben Ter-Arutunian's magical sets. George Balanchine's The Nutcracker™, based on the Alexandre Dumas pere version of E.T.A. Hoffmann's tale, The Nutcracker and the Mouse King (1816), demands a full-scale production.

The elaborate stage elements and intricate lighting unleash the viewers' imagination by providing visual effects that are extraordinarily grand. The most famous example is the one-ton Christmas tree that grows from a height of 12 feet to 40 feet, evoking audible gasps of disbelief from the audience at each performance. Other notable feats include the comic figure of Mother Ginger — 85 pounds and nine feet wide, the costume requires handling by three people once it is lowered by pulley over the dancer's head — as well as the continuous flutter of the purest, crystal-shaped snowflakes (which are swept up and conserved after each performance for reuse).

While these technical achievements are wonderful fun, it is Balanchine's choreography that sustains the ballet through two acts. Act I introduces the characters — the Stahlbaum children, Marie and Fritz, Herr Drosselmeier and his Nephew — and also begins the transition from reality into fantasy with the concluding Snowflake Waltz. Act II offers the complete transformation. We have entered the "Kingdom of the Sugarplum Fairy" and there is no turning back.

George Balanchine's The Nutcracker™ is one of the most complex theatrical, staged ballets in the Company's active repertory. The popularity of the ballet is immense and it provides an unforgettable spark to everyone's holiday season.

Although the original production was not a success, the 20-minute suite that Tchaikovsky extracted from the ballet was. However, the complete Nutcracker has enjoyed enormous popularity since the late 1960s and is now performed by countless ballet companies, primarily during the Christmas season, especially in North America. Major American ballet companies generate around 40 percent of their annual ticket revenues from performances of The Nutcracker.

Tchaikovsky's score has become one of his most famous compositions, in particular the pieces featured in the suite.

Tweet

Wednesday, December 20, 2017 by Mary O'Connor | holiday

Who? You might say.

Johnny Marks  (November 10, 1909 - September 3, 1985) was an American songwriter. Although he was Jewish, he specialized in Christmas songs and wrote many holiday standards, including

"Rudolph, the Red-Nosed Reindeer" (a hit for Gene Autry and others)

"Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree" (a hit for Brenda Lee)

"A Holly Jolly Christmas" (recorded by the Quinto Sisters and later by Burl Ives)

"Silver and Gold" (for Burl Ives)

"Run Rudolph Run" (recorded by Chuck Berry)

Enjoy!

Tweet

Tuesday, December 19, 2017 by Mary O'Connor | holiday

Words and music by William Harold Neidlinger (1863-1924), circa 1890.  Neidlinger was a composer, conductor, organist at St. Michael’s Church, New York City, and voice teacher, but his main interest was working with retarded children, and he founded a school for this purpose in East Orange, N.J. Originally published in 1912 in Neidlinger's native Brooklyn, the song has been popular ever since, particularly as a baritone solo, since it shows off the voice quite well and is not difficult to sing.

1. In the little village of Bethlehem,
 There lay a Child one day;
 And the sky was bright with a holy light
 Over the place where Jesus lay.

Refrain
 Alleluia! O how the angels sang.
 Alleluia! How it rang!
 And the sky was bright with a holy light
 'Twas the birthday of a King.

2. 'Twas a humble birthplace,
 But O how much God gave to us that day,
 From the manger bed what a path has led,
 What a perfect, holy way. Refrain

Beautiful song of God's love for His creation.
 Done beautifully by The Brooklyn Tabernacle Choir.

Tweet