Christmas Music

Music has always been an important part of the Christmas Season for me.   Growing up, our parents provided all of us children with the opportunity to take both piano lessons and to learn an another instrument as a member of the school band.   We weren't always the best at putting in our required practice time every single day, but hardly a day went by without music of some sort filling our little house.  In addition to practicing our instruments, the house was filled with record albums and radios.  My mother were usually have the radio on when we woke in the morning and would do her morning chores to the music of the radio.

At Christmas time we of course had Christmas Music on most of the time.  We would sing together every Monday evening as a part of our Family Home Evening.  On Christmas Eve Daddy would gather us all up into the car along with plates of cookies and fruit cake and we would travel around to the homes of various widows and widowers who he knew would be home alone.  We would sing them a few carols, visit for a few minutes, and leave them with some Christmas Eve goodies.  Reading the Christmas story from the New Testament and singing a few more carols before hanging our stockings was always a tradition too.

During Junior High School and the first few years of High School I was always involved with the High School Christmas Concert, first playing flute with the beginning band and later singing Alto with the Chorus.  Unfortunately during my Junior and senior years I elected to not take any music classes in school in order to fit in more business classes along with all of the Math and science that I could fit into my schedule.   I'm not sure that I would have chosen differently if I were to go back, but I often wish that I had continued with my music.

Since DH and I have been married, we have usually been involved with some sort of musical group and have attended Christmas Concerts of one form or another almost every year.  Most years one or the other or both of us have participated with the Ward Choir at Church.  For several years we had season tickets to the Symphony Orchestra and enjoyed our dates to those concerts.   Once our children became involved with music in school, most years we have had multiple concerts to attend each Christmas Season.  For several years DH sang with a local community Choir and the whole family would attend one or more of their Christmas Concerts each year.   We play Christmas music often during the weeks between Thanksgiving and Christmas and enjoy listening to Christmas music while commuting and traveling in the car.

One Christmas we were living in Cincinnati, and while shopping for Christmas we came across these fun books published by The Willis Music Company.  We bought all five copies that the store had in stock and have used them every December for our own Family Home Evenings and Christmas Eve sing alongs.

We no longer have children in school participating in musical groups, so have not attended any school Christmas Concerts for a few years, but in recent years DH and I have been blessed to attend wonderful Christmas Concerts presented by The Mormon Tabernacle Choir, Manheim Steamroller, and the Piano Guys.  Saturday night I was blessed to return to my home town and escort my dear father to the local Community Christmas Concert that was coordinated by my dear brother, who also sang with the community choir  The concert was presented free of charge in a brand new venue in my hometown, the Dejoria Center at the High Star Ranch.  Yes, it was a small town, local production, and yes, my photo taking skills are definitely lacking, but the venue was lovely, the performers were talented and the music was beautiful and uplifting,

I'm grateful for Christmas Music. How haave you been enjoying music this holiday season?